From the Ashes
by silly-melodies
Summary: Fifteen-year-old Aleksandra "Sasha" Volkov was cast into the world with no memories and the instinct to fight. Sasha is literally a fiery girl, untamed and wild like a beast. Though, she wasn't without her cleverness and cunning that allow her to survive and create her own life From the Ashes of her past, for destruction is the first step to life. Spitfire, SuperMartian, Dick/OC
1. Prologue

**From the Ashes**

**Author's Note: **So…this is my first OC FanFic! Woo! The prologue here might not make that much sense, but it will in time. Trust me. It doesn't really tell you much on the story, much like my summary, sorry for that. We'll be getting onto the story when the first chapter is out! Woo! Also, the time setting in the five-year gap around a year and half later from the last episode of the first season of YJ. So, read and review, or "R&R" as they say and feel free to follow and favorite! Your reviews can go as far as constructive criticism, praise, your opinions on the story, etc., Just…no flames. If you don't like the story, move on to another. No one's forcing you to read this, though, thank you for taking the time to check it out!

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own **Young Justice**, **DC** or any other reference I make in **From the Ashes**. I just own the plot and my OCs.

**Prologue**

I remember…what do I remember? It wasn't much- that was for sure. It was cold and dark. Everything in my body felt numb to the core. Passing into the abyss of Death. I wasn't scared. Only one question rang out in the blackness of Death. Why? Why was I here? With the dark pulling me back, keeping me away from the many blank voices that called out to me. They were like empty echoes, just fading on into the soundless world. I felt my soul beginning to waver as it left my conscious. So…this is what it was like to die.

No. I was too damned stubborn to die.

Nonexistent hands reached out, grasping for something when finally, I saw it. It was a flame. A large flame from where I was. Feeling the heat burning off of it, I didn't reach out for it any longer. I didn't want it. I'd rather die in darkness than burn to death!

Fire, the bringer of destruction, the symbolism of chaos and war. Fire burns everything, bringing nothing but ruin. It was always bad news. I've feared it all my life, more than I feared the ocean. Anything but fire! It was the call of war, the death of millions. Of all things to meet in the world of the dead, it had to be fire. Was I in Hell?

_Fire is so much more than destruction._

The voice rang out above all of the empty echoes in the abyss. I could feel my eyes widen in surprise. If fire wasn't destruction, then what was it?

Suddenly, I looked again at the flame, this time it was much smaller, like a tea-light. Curious, I held my hands out and grasped the tiny flare. Emotions washed over me, so many emotions. Sadness, anger, fear, happiness, passion, joy. I looked at the flame as it burned on in the palms of my hands. Like a little heartbeat, it flickered on. Then, suddenly the blackness was alight with flames! Colors I never even knew of danced in the fire as it swirled around me, breathing into me the one thing it really was; Life.

Fire. On the surface it was destruction, chaos, death and war. It was known to burn everything and leave nothing left. But it was so much more! Fire…this tiny little flame, was life and emotion. It was the flame that brought me back. The spark of life in my eyes, the passion and emotion that filled my soulless body, the ferocity that kept me fighting, and the determination that kept those embers burning.

Destruction is the first step to new life.

From the ashes, there is life.


	2. Chapter One

**From the Ashes**

**Author's Note: **Here it is! Woo! The first chapter! I felt bad for leaving y'all that very inconspicuous prologue, so I'm a softy and had two updates in one day! Be thankful. So, now we get more into the story...sorta. Ha. Well, we get the introduction of our OC! That's always good, right?! Hehe...Read and review! I love dem reviews! Also, feel free to favorite and follow! All is appreciated! Thank you!

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own **Young Justice**, **DC** or any other reference I make in **From the Ashes**. I just own the plot and my OCs.

**Chapter One**

**Infinity Island**

**July 16th, 2012 12:45 AM EST**

Flames licked along frail, numb arms, not daring to sear the fair skin they traveled on. Amber eyes stared blankly into the darkness not lit by their light.

"Your name is Sasha Volkov." A spiteful voice hissed from a place where those amber eyes could not see.

"My name…" The voice of a young girl rasped, sounding as though her dried lips were without water for longer than a human could withstand. A young, ebony haired girl lay awkwardly on the floor, her frail and small body surrounded by a ring of flames the same color as her amber eyes. In the flames she watched images dance like a movie, playing on without any plot. What were they? What was her name again? "Is…" She had to remember. Why couldn't she remember? "Sasha…" Sasha…what? Why was it so hard to say one little word? "Volkov…"

Sasha Volkov. That's it?

Who's Sasha Volkov? … Oh, that was her name. Right?

"Her heart rate is becoming unstable," Another voice called from the unlit darkness. Ebony locks fell into her vision and she didn't bother with brushing it out of the way. Such a move would be pointless in this situation. Slowly, gold-tinted irises moved over to examine the rest of Sasha's body. Her emotions didn't spike at the sight of the flames gliding across her skin, leaving it unscathed and unmarred. Tongues of red and orange licked up her arms and legs, gliding along the fair skin with ease and left without affecting her body. Strange.

Suddenly her eyes found their way back to the images designed by the embers and flames of the fire. They confused her. Scared her even. What were they? Why did they reveal themselves to her? The images came at a faster pace, revealing strange content to her that overwhelmed her mind. What were they trying to tell her? These images branded in fire made her subconscious mind go into a panic and she suddenly began to ask more questions. Where was she? Why was she here?

"Her subconscious is coming back to her and her heart rate is accelerating! She's going into a panic state; the process won't be complete at this rate!" Another voice shouted in the dark.

Who were these people? What did they want with her?

Sasha was indeed going into a panic. Out of this panic, her mind became clouded and the voices around her became muffled even as they rose. The flames grew larger and the images spun faster until the smoke blackened Sasha's sight. Or…was that her mind?

* * *

**Over the Caribbean**

**July 16th, 2012 12:45 AM EST**

"So…" Wally West, aka Kid Flash, drawled on and cast a gaze at the team leader, folding his arms over his strapped chest. "Why are we infiltrating the League of Shadows?" He asked and snaked a hand over to the dash of the Bio-ship where he left his snack bag. No sense in running low on fuel.

"Several people have gone missing and the Justice League has a lead that might prove that the Shadows have something to do with it." Aqualad informed, not leaving his gaze off the hologram information in front of him. "We are not to make any broad attacks. This is a simple recon mission. Which is why we left Rocket, Beast Boy, Superboy, Zatanna and Artemis at the Cave," He said matter-of-factly in that formal way of his. Kid Flash never really understood why Kaldur was always so…serious. Ah, well. He had his moments.

"Yup!" Quipped Miss Martian from the control seat. She glanced down, green eyes driven away from the window that invited the sight of the stars and the ocean to the Team.

Robin sat in a seat close to the dash, his arms crossed over his chest. "Though, why did we bring K.F.? He isn't exactly the stealthiest of us all." He said teasingly, throwing a glance at his redheaded friend. Kid just sent him a playful death glare before tossing a chip into his mouth.

"Hey!" The ginger began between mouthfuls of chips. "Not cool, dude." He said and pointed one of the salty snacks at the Boy Wonder.

Though he couldn't see it, Robin rolled his eyes at Kid Flash and scoffed. It was usual for the boys to mess with each other like this. There weren't any hard feelings as long as neither teenager went too far into their petty 'arguments.' Hardly ever did the two get in real arguments and usually they were short lived and they never hung over them for long. Robin's gaze drifted from his friend and back to the scenery around him- er, the ship. The Caribbean Sea…well, a lot of people said it was a lot different from any other sea, though, other than the several islands they could see from time to time, there didn't seem to be anything special about it. Then again, it was night and even through night vision, he couldn't tell a difference between this and the Great Lakes.

Over the horizon, the Team could make out the shape of a monastery and then a whole island. It was Infinity Island. From their distance, they could already make out the several armored guards at each window, exit, and entrance. Each corner, crack, and crevice had eyes on them either by human or by machine. The League of Shadows' main base was guarded to the teeth. "Going into camouflage mode." Megan informed from behind the rest of the team. Without anything else said, her white garb shifted to black and the hood of her blue cloak draped itself over her head, and Kid Flash tapped the center of his own suit, the color of the material slowly turned from yellow and red to black. Though they couldn't quite see it, Robin was pretty sure that the Bio-ship went into camouflage mode, hidden away from prying eyes.

"Miss Martian, link us up, please." Aqualad said.

_Link Established. _The voice of M'gann M'orzz filled the minds of the small stealth squad. The Bio-ship moved silently over the base and lowered to be level with the few trees there.

_Robin, we'll need you and Kid Flash to find the quickest way in, M'gann and I will disarm any guards and follow. _Aqualad commanded mentally. Both boys stood up at their cue and stood center in the ship.

_Gotchya. _

_You got it._

Both boys replied in unison and the floor of the ship opened up, the two heroes dropped to the ground, fine hairs of the grass gently brushing the ankles of their shoes. The air was hot and sticky, usual for a tropical island of sorts, though…it wasn't any different at home since the hottest days of the summer were occurring. After a mental consulting, Kid Flash and Robin dashed off to the first wall of the monastery, Robin pulled out an auto grapple gun and aimed some distance above the wall as it came into view. After pulling the trigger and allowing the grapple to silently fly and hook onto the wall with a small sound of a coiling, metal cable, he grabbed his friend's arm before allowing the hook to retract and the two were pulled over the wall and they landed silently. Once they were behind the wall, a few guards were there to greet their unexpected guests. Thankfully they hadn't noticed their silent approach, Kid Flash quickly and quietly speed walked to one of the guards in front of him and with a sharp, swift whack in the neck, the man went out like a light and the speedster broke his fall, whilst Robin did the same to a nearby guard and quickly turned, pulling out a stun gun and shooting a few volts of electricity at the last guard remaining.

_Two-one. K.F., you've lost your touch. _Robin teased mentally, earning an eye roll from his friend as the two pulled the guards to sit up against the wall.

_Whatever._ _I'm just gettin' warmed up._ Kid Flash replied, standing up right with his hands on his hips and he shrugged his shoulders. He gave the Boy Wonder a smug grin. Not long after that, Aqualad leapt from the wall and landed next to Robin, shortly followed by M'gann who flew over the wall, her body nearly transparent now. The Martian floated to the ground to stand between the boys and she looked around.

_There's an entrance around the corner of the courtyard._ _I saw about five guards there and I think a lock system. _Miss Martian informed them silently and glanced over at Robin whose lips curled into a smirk.

_I got that covered._

_Alright, then. Let's move out, _Came Aqualad's voice and the small squad gave each other quick nods before running towards the courtyard that M'gann had informed them of. Kid Flash was the first there, being the fastest, and the first to take down one guard with a punch to the jaw and a clean leg sweep, he took away the guard's weapon. Then came M'gann, who had the bright idea of telekinetically ram two guards together, Robin followed after and checked a guard in the neck, surely to knock him out in an instant, and then Aqualad came into view and had a short fight with the remaining guard. Robin went straight to work at the system control lock next to the metal double doors, he flicked his wrist and held his hand infront of him and, on a silent command, a holographic computer system projected itself from his glove. After finding some sort of connection, a small code there, and a little bit of file working and he was into the lock system.

_We're in. _He announced mentally as the doors slid open to allow the squad access to the interior of the monastery. The teens stopped abruptly once inside, waiting on any command from their leader.

_Ya' know, why is it that all the bad guys have crummy looking places?_ _I mean, it wouldn't kill them to clean up every once and a while._ A certain speedster's voice muttered in their minds. Miss Martian cast him an amused glance while the other two consulted on the rest of the plan. Robin just shook his head.

_I don't think the bad guys really have time to clean._ _They use their time doing…you know, bad stuff. _ Came the Boy Wonder's voice and he shrugged.

_We'll have to split up from here._ _The complex isn't big enough to allow us out of Miss Martian's telepathic range, so refrain from using your comm. devices, and try not to draw attention to yourself. Kid Flash, you're with me and Miss Martian will go with Robin. _ Aqualad said mentally as he approached the three. Then, with that and a chorus of approval, they split up with Aqualad and Kid Flash going to the left and Robin and Miss Martian going right.

* * *

**Infinity Island**

**July 16th, 2012 1:01 AM EST**

Robin opened up yet another door of the northern wing only to find another training room. So far the two were unable to find any evidence of kidnappings, only a lot of minor guards that were a just little more than easy to take out. As the Boy Wonder took in the emptiness of this room, a frown formed on his face. "Not here, either. Maybe the League of Shadows isn't responsible for the kidnappings." He said sounding frustrated and he looked over at Miss Martian who floated in the air not far from him. A hard line formed on her lips and she sighed.

_Still nothing on our side. _Came Kid Flash's voice. _You? _He asked, sounded about as annoyed and frustrated as Robin felt.

_No, we've yet to find anything, _Was Miss Martian's reply and she looked worriedly at Robin as they continued through the halls. This was the fifteenth room they investigated and still nothing appeared. Maybe this mission was all for naught. Though, that would only allow more questions on these kidnappings to rise to the surface and, other than the League of Shadows, the Team and the League had no leads. It would be a dead end case, for sure. That happened now and then, but it never felt good to just drop a case.

"The hypnotics are failing!" A voice muffled behind steel called from another room. The two teens froze for a small moment before exchanging glances and then dashing off towards the voice. "Her mind is absorbing memories that aren't even hers!" The same voice called, louder now that the two were closing in on their target. They approached the door whence the voice came from and without warning, M'gann's powers forced the door to fly open, though Robin managed to easily dodge the swipe of the metal opening. Quickly they went into the room to meet the images before them. The room was mostly dark, though the scattered footsteps of several others echoed throughout the empty space. In the center of the room the cinders of a circled fire died down, barely lighting the figure of a young girl lying unconscious on the stone floor. The light from the hall poured into the room and many, traditionally dressed people left murmuring things the two couldn't quite understand, leaving Robin, M'gann, the unconscious girl, and two others that they could not see.

"Spider. I believe you can handle this…" A thickly accented voice gruffly said.

In the pitch black, the heroes could spot a shift of movement in the air and then it settled. Robin was tense. 'Spider' referred to the infamous Black Spider, an assassin of the League of Shadows. A skilled assassin, at that. Not as skilled as Cheshire, but still deadly. Robin was familiar with the Shadow's skill in hand-to-hand combat and it matched his own near perfect, not only that but there was also the issue of those webs that he liked to use. Both Miss Martian and Robin would have to work carefully with this foe without allowing harm to the unconscious girl.

_Miss. M, we need to try to protect the girl. _Robin thought just before Black Spider lunged at the two. They split from each other's sides in attempt to dodge the attack, Miss Martian quickly motioned for her powers to launch the metal door at the assassin as he ran towards Robin, causing a slight diversion.

_Yeah, I know. _She responded just before Robin threw two explosive Batarangs at Black Spider during the diversion. Both teens stood still for a moment as the detonators went off, the flash of light and growing smoke slightly blurred their vision. Still they watched for the outcome of the attack. Had they won?

_Miss Martian._ _Robin. What's going on? _Aqualad inquired mentally, though he didn't receive an answer until a while later.

Black Spider leapt out of the smoke and charged after Robin. The first attack he managed to block and the two struggled against each other to push the other back and Black Spider managed to accomplish this. Though, Robin seized the moment of distance and swung a round house at the assassin, checking him in the jaw. Recovering quickly, the spider resulted to his webs and shot the sticky substance at the Boy Wonder to mask his vision, enabling him to buy time. Though, Robin wasn't his only opponent.

Miss Martian saw the attack from afar, she was busy trying to see through the dark where the girl had disappeared to, the only thing to light her vision was the light from the hallway and that was enough to let her keep an eye on Robin in his fight. She saw his staggering nature and the Black Spider approaching him like he was prey, instinctively she moved her hands in a motion that picked up the assassin off his feet and threw him into the wall. This gave the teens their time to do what they had to. Miss Martian managed to telepathically sense and find the girl she was looking for, though…something about her mental state felt…broken. Shattered even. Why?

Peeling off the sticky webbing, Robin had realized his lost momentum and tried to quickly regain it as he watched when Black Spider began to recover from ramming into the steel walls of the nearly hollow room. He ran after his opponent and as he began closing their distance, Robin forced his body to bend back and kicked his legs up, hitting Black Spider just under his chin as the Boy Wonder went into a hand stand and then quickly recovered his upright position. He knew he'd have to make sure Black Spider wouldn't be able to jump into hand-to-hand with him, so he had to struggle with keeping a good distance away from him, far enough to ensure he wouldn't easily get him in some sort of lock and close enough so Robin could still make his own attacks. Though, since their speed and agility matched, it would be hard to have a constant distance between the two.

The boy moved quick, throwing punches that distanced them a good two feet away at each attack. Though, Black Spider managed to grab hold of his forearm and attempted to slam him into the wall, but Robin countered the attack and he grabbed hold of Black Spider's shoulder and flipped himself over him to land behind him, this also caused the spider's arm to bend awkwardly due to not letting go of Robin and resulted in dislocation. Robin slammed his opponent into the wall and with a swift movement, jarred the side of his hand into the crook of his neck. Black Spider's body went limp after this and Robin allowed him to drop to the floor, though he still placed hand cuffs on his wrists. The Boy Wonder stood up right and looked behind him to see Miss Martian sitting over the unconscious girl, her brow furrowed and green eyes wondering off at the girl with confusion and curiosity.

Now that he could see clearly, he could make out the girl's appearance better than before. She was young, probably the same age as him, her hair was a dark shade of ebony and her complexion was pale, below her left eye was a small mole, nothing to gross like any other mole, more of a…dark shaded freckle, really, her body was lithe and surprisingly well-built, as though she'd been training for…years, maybe. She clothes were burned, but not gone, and her feet were bare. Her hair was long and probably the straightest hair Robin saw, her long bangs parted to the right and the shape of her hair had a slight, natural spike.

"Is everything alright? What happened?" A new voice echoed in the room and Robin turned to look over at Aqualad and Kid Flash who finally arrived. It was Kid Flash who spoke first, not bothering with having a mental conversation. Green irises spotted the unconscious girl near M'gann and his eyes widened. "Is that our proof?" He asked, a slight amusing tone in his voice as he spoke. Though, he didn't exactly get an answer right away.

"Robin, what happened here?" Aqualad inquired sternly to his second in command. Robin and Miss Martian exchanged looks before he answered.

"We heard something going on in here and kinda barged in. I think some of the League of Shadows spiritualists were performing a hypnotics on this girl, it's part of a way they train so that Ra's Al Ghul could have full control over his assassins, but something happened to stop it and when we came in this girl was surrounded by fire!" As this information, Aqualad's gaze shifted to the girl. He was slightly unsettled by this news. Why would she be surrounded by fire? "Black Spider was here and someone else, but he got away somehow. I managed to incapacitate Black Spider and put restraints on him." Robin informed and gestured over to the disabled assassin on the floor. The strange thing was. He wasn't there. How could he have recovered so quickly? Unless…he faked passing out.

"What?" Robin gasped and, without warning, he almost ran out the door to find the assassin. Though, Kid Flash and Aqualad stopped him.

"Don't worry about it, dude." Kid Flash muttered. "We need to worry about the girl right now. Besides, even if we did take Black Spider into custody, he'd just escape like every other time." He reasoned and Robin stood down. For once, Kid had a good reason.

A hard line formed on Aqualad's mouth as he stared back at the girl. "We must get out of the facility before Black Spider informs his higher-ups and they send out their guards again." He then looked at his teammates. "We cannot allow them to take this girl again, she might be the proof we need to find out about the kidnappings."

* * *

Miss Martian managed to call her Bio-ship closer than where it had dropped them off and by the time they had arrived outside of the facility, the ship was waiting for them. Kid was the first to get in, carrying the ebony haired girl in his arms, then it was Miss Martian, then Robin, and finally Aqualad. They had no difficulty getting outside, thank god, and once they were inside the ship they took off and were over the sea in no time. Miss Martian had allowed the Bio-ship to man itself, her mind was divided by the thought of that girl. There was something wrong with her, something serious.

M'gann didn't even have to be inside her mind to sense the dysfunction in her. It felt as though her mind was leaking information that shouldn't belong there. Then, in the middle of their flight, that information stopped and there was nothing left. The martian felt discomfort at this. Something like this generally meant that there was something that this girl wanted to forget, her subconscious made some sort of mental block and she wouldn't even remember it. Though, she didn't know why her mind leaked information like that. It was unsettling.

This girl was unsettling.


	3. Chapter Two

**From the Ashes**

**Author's Note: **Hi everyone! Gosh, this chapter is LONG! Ha! I hope that's a good thing! So, go ahead and read, don't forget to review! Feel free to favorite and follow also! I really hope you guys like Sasha, and it would be AWESOME if you guys could help me keep her in line and out of trouble of becoming a Mary-Sue. So, just give me the red alert, and the little minions will get to fixin' it! Thanks~

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own **Young Justice**, **DC** or any other reference I make in **From the Ashes**. I just own the plot and my OCs.

**Chapter Two**

**Mount Justice**

**July 16th, 2012 7:12 PM EST**

The world seemed to be spinning in slow motion. Amber eyes fluttered open in a motion that was quite fluent. Ebony locks blurred her vision only the slightest and as her body shifted in the warm bed she lied in, those locks fell to the pillow and she was able to take in her surroundings. It was nothing special. Just a regular room, with the bed shoved into the far right corner, a desk in the left corner, a dresser across the bed, and a night stand close to the bed. The air was strangely stagnant and frigid, like someone just turned off the air-conditioning. With slow and cautious motions, the girl moved out of the bed, being careful to be quiet. Working quick and swiftly, she moved across the room and, with an instinct that came natural, she opened the door, stepped out into the hall, and closed the door quickly and silently. With light feet, she speed walked down the hall into some sort of living room area. No one was around.

Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. Where was she? The girl moved over to the kitchen area and grabbed one of the small knives from the collection stand and then bent down to look through the lower cabinets. She found a few pots and pans, nothing special, maybe the occasional strange cookware that she didn't quite know the name of. Actually…now that she thought on it. She didn't know a lot of stuff she should have known. Or at least, that she felt she should've known. Like a large chunk of unneeded, yet convenient, knowledge was torn from her mind. Strange.

There was a shift the air. Casual movements, yet still barely noticeable by the unknowing person. The gentle touch on the girl's shoulders set her instincts on fire, with one hand she grabbed the forearm of said hand that grabbed her and with the other, she clutched the short knife. With a swift movement, she twisted her ankle around his own and forced him between her and the counter, twisting his arm around his back and shoving him into the counter, she kept her leg against his own legs and with her free hand, held the knife very close to him. The boy she tackled was maybe the same age as her, messy black hair and…in her opinion, unneeded sunglasses. The strangest thing though, he wasn't resisting.

Still, she asked in a sour tone, "Who are you?" The girl felt his unseen eyes on her and his lips curled into a slight smirk.

"Robin." He said freely, his voice giving a hint that it should sound familiar. The name didn't ring any bells.

"Never heard of you." She informed to Robin. "Ah, well. Not like a name would help," Seeing as she didn't seem to remember anything. Now, back to questioning. No need getting smug with this kid. "Where am I?" There was that bite in her tone again.

The boy, Robin, chuckled lightly. "The Cave." He told her, as though she should know what that was. Her eyes narrowed. What was this kid playing at?

"Why am I here? Why can't I…" Her words trailed off. It wouldn't be wise to reveal that she didn't remember anything of her own past. Sure she knew stuff like mathematics and knowledgeable stuff like that, even more surprisingly how to properly incapacitate someone in the quickest way possible, but she didn't know anything personal. Not even when her birthday was. Just the name…

Pain greater than any migraine singed her mind and she nearly gasped, her grip against Robin dropped all of a sudden and she backed away, letting go of the knife. That name. Why was that the only thing in her mind? Why couldn't she remember anything about herself but that name? That name…it felt like a curse. Bitter on the edge of her tongue like the rind of an old lime. Well, at least she knew what that tasted like.

Robin, now aware of her guard being dropped, easily shifted his way out of her lock and then gave the two distance between themselves, his brows furrowed the show that maybe his eyes narrowed at her. The girl was still trying to register her surroundings, taking in her state and then quickly regaining her mental control. Once again, her body tensed and her jaw clenched. She was ready for a fight if she had to.

"Calm down. I don't want to hurt you, no one does." The boy said calmly, coaxing her to be at his level of temperance. Though, this only heightened her paranoia. Plus, he didn't answer her question.

Patience running dry, she asked again. "Why am I here?"

"Way to stay whelmed…" He muttered lowly and then spoke up finally. "What's the last thing you remember?"

Why would he answer her question with a question? Uhg, she hated people like that. She stared at him for a long time, amber eyes narrowed and a quizzical look on her face. Though, she had to be truthful with him.

"I remember waking up in that room not just five minutes ago and that's about it," She answered with a shrug. "Why?" Robin's expression suddenly went grave and he mumbled something incoherent, though the girl caught something about some girl being right about something. Then he looked up at her again with a serious expression.

"We gotta get you to the others. Maybe they can help," He said and swiped at her hand in attempt to drag her along to wherever he was thinking about. The girl was quick enough to take her hand back and with a quick and fluent move, she smacked his hand away. Once again, when she spoke, her tone was sour and lethal.

"Do not touch me."

Robin frowned and shrugged his shoulders, turning around to walk away. "Fine. Suit yourself," He muttered and then gestured for her to follow. Her move was hesitant, but she soon followed, keeping her distance and marking every path and known door, any exits, if any. There weren't. Though, the room that Robin led her to did seem interesting enough. It was a near empty room, put aside the large, oval-shaped contraption hanging from the ceiling and the strange, cone-shaped devices embedded into one of the walls. Under the oval device, there were four gathered; a man in some weird black outfit with a cowl over his face, a woman with long blond hair and a suggestive, form-fitting outfit, and a girl with green skin, eyes, red hair, and an outfit that consisted of the colours red, white, and blue, and then a young man who had that strangest of appearances that slightly resembled something out of a fantasy book. They were all viewing some sort of holographic computer that showed information regarding some sort of criminal case.

Their appearances didn't bode well for her and the girl tensed, ready to fight if she had to. Her paranoia rose just a tad and she was getting impatient. She wanted answers. More about herself than anything, really. The woman's blues eyes caught Robin and the girl's approach and she looked over at them, silently drawing the attention of the rest beside her. All eyes were on the girl, making her feel most uncomfortable. She bit her lip and kept a hard stare at the ground at she followed Robin over to the group.

"Uh…" Robin began, looking both at the ebony-haired girl and then to his counterparts. "This is Batman," He gestured to the man in black. "Black Canary," The blond woman. "Miss Martian," The green skinned girl. "And Aqualad," The last was the fantasy looking young man. Miss Martian waved with a small smile, Black Canary and Aqualad gave her a modest nod, and Batman just stared. Geez, talk about creepy. "Batman, Black Canary, Miss Martian, Aqualad…this is…" Robin trailed off, looking at her quizzically. She never told him her name. If she had one at all.

Only one name came in mind.

"My name is Sasha Volkov." She said confidently. Though, she wasn't at all confident that was her name. Just something that echoed in the back of her mind.

"Russian?" Miss Martian muttered to herself, causing Sasha to raise an eyebrow in question.

They all looked at Sasha for a while before Batman turned to the holographic keyboard and began typing in things that she didn't quite register. Robin blinked at her for a moment, a confused expression on his face. "I thought you said you don't remember anything," This spiked the interest of all those around. Sasha sighed and crossed her arms.

"I don't remember anything about myself except for that name. Though, I can tell you I remember mathematics, basic science, and literature. Anything outside of that is just instinct. I guess," She informed with a shrug.

"You said you found her at the League of Shadows' base," Batman stated and turned to face the group again. "The League of Shadows trains their assassins and followers by brainwashing them into being in complete control of their leader, Ra's Al Ghul, but I've never heard of the hypnotics going into whipping out your past and leaving only the things necessary for an assassin to know, like how to fight and basic knowledge to live in the real world. Almost like she has suppressed memories." He deduced, looking over at her observingly. Amber eyes narrowed. What was this guy getting at?

"Maybe she had some beef with the Shadows?" Robin suggested.

"Both that or she found out something she wasn't supposed to know and then her hypnotic's procedure didn't turn out well," Miss Martian muttered, looking over at Sasha as though she were a science experiment. Sasha bristled at this.

"There is a range of possibilities, and neither of it answers whether or not the League of Shadows are responsible for the kidnappings." Aqualad explained, looking over at Black Canary who just looked over at the digital files projected infront of them. "It could be a new method of training so that their assassins have little to no morals,"

Sasha had enough of being ignored. "Okay, can we back up and not talk about me like I'm not standing right infront of you?" She bit rudely. She had their attention now. "For one, I want to know where exactly I am and why I'm here. Then we can get into the details of who this League of Shadows and Ra's Al Ghul are and why they're brainwashing me,"

The group stared at her for a long time before Aqualad finally spoke. "You're in a place we call the Cave, it is our base of operations, or an HQ of sorts. Our Team is a young, covert group that helps the citizens of the world along with our older counterparts, the Justice League." He explained where she was, though not in the best detail. Sasha was still unsure of where in the world they were, but she still listened. "You are here because a small unit went into the base of a secret organization known as the League of Shadows looking for information regarding kidnappings. Instead, we found you and you were unconscious, so we brought you back. The League of Shadows is a secret organization known for its manipulation, extortion, and power-brokering. It's also an organization specializing in secret assassinations and conspiracies. Ra's Al Ghul is their leader," Aqualad cut short of the information that Sasha requested and she looked at him with accusing eyes, expecting more out of him.

She didn't get anything else. Maybe they weren't sure why the League of Shadows brainwashed her. Either way, it was aggravating her that she didn't know anything else. Sasha sighed and put on a gentler expression. One of worry, concern and annoyance. "I really don't know anything. It sucks because it would help the both of us, right now, but I just…don't know anything about this," She admitted, her tone defeated. "It's weird waking up and not knowing a thing about yourself, and you find yourself in a strange place where you don't know what's going on,"

A hard line formed on Black Canary's lips and she walked infront of the ebon haired girl. She stood a little over a head taller than her, and placed her hands on Sasha's shoulders. "I can't say I know how it feels, but we'll help you. It seems you'll have to stay here for a while until we find out more," The blond told her and turned to Miss Martian. "M'gann, can you take care of her for now while we continue with the investigation?"

Miss Martian, or…M'gann, nodded modestly and smiled. "Of course!" She quipped and walked beside Sasha. "C'mon, I'll show you around," The girl said cheerily and walked off. Sasha hesitated to follow and then quickly obliged. "My real name is M'gann M'orzz, in case you were wondering. I go by Megan Morse, though, and Aqualad is actually Kaldur'ahm, but you can call him Kaldur…" M'gann's voice trailed off in Sasha's mind.

Her thoughts were on several other matters.

* * *

"So, now that you know your way around, I guess we can just stay in here, or you can go to your room. It's all up to you, really, I don't mind!" M'gann said kindly, waving away any worries on Sasha. Though, her feelings were indifferent. M'gann had decided to stop their tour in the living and kitchen area, noting that there wasn't much else that would be relevant during Sasha's stay. Without any words said, the ebony-haired girl turned and walked into the living room area, she looked over at the couch and noticed a new face that she had yet to meet. The girl was slender and a bit tan, her features were sharp and trained and her hair was long and the colour of sand. She turned her head to meet Sasha's gaze and a thin, blond eyebrow rose in question.

"You must be the girl that they brought home this morning?" Her tone was a question, and her lips turned up in a half smile. Sasha shrugged and looked over astray.

"I suppose," She muttered with a sigh, nearly forgetting proper manners. "Oh-I'm Sasha Volkov," Her grey eyes sparked at her Russian name.

_Yes. Yes, I'm Russian… Even though, clearly I don't have the accent!_

"Artemis," was her answer. "So, you're going to be staying here for a while, huh?" Sasha nodded and leaned against the couch, arms crossed. A knowing smile came across the blonde's face. "Alright then, it's settled, I'm taking you shopping."

Sasha's face formed a question mark. "What?"

Artemis scoffed at this and rolled her eyes. "C'mon, you don't expect to be wearing that for the rest of your life, do you?" She queried, scanning the ebony-haired girl up and down. What was wrong with her outfit?

Sasha looked down to see exactly what was wrong with her outfit. The short-sleeved, white top was scorched to become a white tank with one of the straps missing, and the once dark blue, denim skinny-jeans were now black shorts, and her feet lacked any shoes. Well, it didn't take a genius to figure out that was embarrassing. Though, Sasha didn't quite understand why they had to go full-blown shopping. Just a few new clothes, comfortable enough to live in, was necessary. Seeing the annoyed look on the girl's face, Artemis laughed and stood, taking her hand and leading her away. Once again, Sasha wasn't really okay with all the hand grabbing, but this time she let it slide.

"C'mon, I'll get you something to wear and then we can try to getchya' outta this place," Artemis said and led her down the hall and to her temporary room. The archer always had extra clothes at the Cave, excluding her uniform, just in case she had to stay the night for reasons to come up. They weren't the fanciest clothes, but they'd work and hopefully fit the fifteen-year-old. Though, the best that they could find that would easily fit her were some jean shorts and a black, over-sized t-shirt, with a black undershirt that she felt comfortable wearing.

Sasha's amber eyes sparked with an idea and she took off the shirt. "Hey, you don't mind this getting torn do you?" Artemis stared at the younger girl for a little while before arching a brow at her in question. The blond pulled out some scissors from her desk and handed them to her.

"You can cut it, but not tear it," She told Sasha warily. Sasha nodded and plopped down on Artemis's unused bed, snipping away evenly at the neck of the black t-shirt until the hem was completely off. The girl threw back on the t-shirt, its neck now widened to allow it to fall down her arm and expose her right shoulder and the strap of her black undershirt as well as her bra strap. The outfit complimented her perfectly, even if it was temporary. Artemis smiled her approval and nodded. "Yup, it looks five times better. Who knew a girl without memories could have good taste?" She laughed lightly, though her statement caused Sasha to wonder how she knew about her memories. Apparently, her curiosity was visible on her face because Artemis had answered her mental question without even hearing it. "Robin told me your situation when I arrived to the Cave." The blonde's lips formed a hard line. "Sorry they did that to you,"

Sasha didn't need a clarification as to who 'they' were. The League of Shadows. The organization that made her forget who she ever was. Sasha's fists clenched and she glared spitefully at the ground. Why? That's all she wanted to know. Why did they take her memories away? The others explained that what happened to her was a similar process they used to train their assassins. Did that mean she was supposed to be an assassin and in some freak accident, she lost her memories?

Sensing the tense air around the raven-haired girl, Artemis cleared her throat and stood up off her bed. "Alright, enough sulking, let's see if we can get out of this place," She said, snapping Sasha out of her thoughts. The girl smirked and rolled her eyes.

"Sure, whatever," Sasha said with a shrug and stood up, following the blond out her room and towards the briefing area. For some reason, Sasha knew she wasn't an assassin, far from it even.

* * *

"The League of Shadow's did a pretty good job of covering up her legal files," Robin muttered, leering over at the holographic images. Though it had only been a little less than an hour since the Team learned Sasha's full name, the Boy Wonder had expected to find more than just one file. Said file was from seven years ago. The file consisted information on a young, nine-year old Aleksandra "Sasha" Volkov attending some sort of homeschooling system in the Gotham's schooling district. That was it. The file from the school was only a recording of her grades, there were no family names mentioned or some way they could track down her parents. Though, it managed to narrow down their search to Gotham, which…admittedly, anything could've happened there. Especially around that time.

Whoever this Sasha Volkov was, the Shadows didn't want anyone to find out who she was.

As for the name Aleksandra "Sasha" Volkov…that was understandable since the nickname for Aleksandra in Russia was "Sasha," so he let that little tidbit slide. Though, any files in Russia about the girl would probably be very secure and not to mention a bad idea to infiltrate. He'd have to ask Batman about that…

Not long ago, both Black Canary and Batman had left the Cave, their excuse being they had League business to attend to. Robin didn't really doubt them, it's just finding these files were proven to be more difficult than he had expected, even for his level of hacking and encrypting. Maybe Batman would have better luck.

"Any luck finding any more information on Sasha?" A formal tone spoke from behind him. Robin glanced back to see his leader and friend close to him, eyes trained on the screen above. Robin sighed and ran his hand through his hair, the boy bit his lip and took a deep breath.

"Not really," The boy muttered and crossed his arms. "It's weird how all her files are missing. The League of Shadows couldn't have done a clean wipe like that in just a few months, they probably wouldn't have done it at all unless she's significant,"

Kaldur cast his friend a worried glance. "That makes her chances of being a kidnapping victim very slim, or at least of the recent kidnappings,"

"Which means not only do we have a slim chance of getting a lead on the recent kidnappings, we might also have another case on our hands,"

The two stood in silence for the time being until Artemis and Sasha made their appearance in the briefing room. The two were chatting together, both making snide remarks about something unclear of the subject. Sasha was in a new outfit, no longer walking about in the burned up clothes she had before. She looked quite nice now that she was cleaned up, her mid-back length, black hair brushed and even still it was the straightest hair he's seen on a girl. She wasn't the tallest girl on earth, probably coming up to Artemis's shoulder. Oddly coloured, amber eyes glinted with a natural, familiar mischief and tease giving her a smug and snarky aura. Sasha's body was lean and lithe with a muscle build that didn't distort her appearance much. Her complexion was pale, as though she hadn't seen the sun in years. Hell, she probably hasn't.

"Hey," Artemis spoke, snapping Robin out of his thoughts. She quirked an eyebrow at him and shook her head. "I was wondering if I could take Sasha shopping, is that okay or did Bats say no to the road trips?"

Robin grimaced and checked the time. "Batman didn't say anything about taking her out, but it's already eight and it's a Sunday. Most of the stores close around six, right?"

The archer winced at the news and scratched her neck. "It's already eight?" She chuckled a bit nervously and cast a sideways glance at the floor. "I didn't even notice,"

The Boy Wonder smirked. Artemis and Wally were spending their day around Happy Harbor, doing God knows what. Seems like the usually levelheaded blonde lost track of time in her daze. "Time sure flies when you're with Wally, huh?"

Artemis just blushed shamefully and grumbled a, "Shut up," towards him, causing Robin to laugh. She quickly regained her composure and sneered at the raven-haired boy in front of her. "I think there's a twenty-four hour thrift shop in Gotham, it's a cheap place so I could afford to buy her a couple outfits." Artemis suggested with a shrug. Robin frowned at this. Gotham could be a dangerous place at night.

"I don't know…the activity in Gotham has been riling up, lately. You sure you'll be okay?"

Artemis rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I'll be alright. I can handle myself and I'll have no problem protecting Sasha,"

Sasha's eyes flicked with what looked like defense and she looked away, mumbling something to herself. Seems like she didn't like the idea of having someone protect her. For a girl that didn't have any memories, she had quite a personality. Robin sighed and thought on it long and hard. He knew Artemis could protect herself and Sasha no sweat…He just didn't like the idea of sending them into Gotham at night. It would be even worse if they came back with Batman.

Sasha's lips curled into a smirk and she crossed her arms. "I'm pretty sure if I could get you kneeling over a counter, Artemis and I will be just fine," She said smugly. Geez, what an arrogant little girl, she was.

Artemis's smiled and looked from the girl to Robin. "What? You bested Boy Wonder?"

"No! She just caught me off guard," Robin protested. "Besides, I didn't even resist,"

Artemis and Sasha shared a laugh. "Sure, whatever," Sasha chuckled and took a deep breath. "Can we go? Please, _Boy Wonder_?" She said his title mockingly.

"Fine!" Robin threw his hands up in submission. "Go. Just try not to get into trouble?"

The two girls laughed together again and Artemis took Sasha's hand, Robin was surprised she didn't slap away the gesture like she had him. The girl was adjusting quickly. Both girls quickly walked over to the Zeta-Beam device.

"_Recongized: Artemis B07; Sasha Volkov A08."_

* * *

**Gotham**

**July 16th, 2012 8:43 PM EST**

Sasha was a bit disappointed when the two arrived in Gotham to see that the sun had not been out. Instead, it was the beginning of night, the half-moon just hovering over the city skyline, the stars that should be there were blotted out by the many lights and the moon's luminous glow dimmed more than usual that night. The trip through the Zeta-Beam didn't very much settled her well, leaving the girl a bit light-headed. Her reaction to the device must've been obvious, because Artemis seemed to notice.

"The Zeta-Beam takes some time to get used to, trust me; the first time I used it I wanted to vomit," The blond admitted, though her sheepishly blush turned into a threatening smirk. "Let's keep that between you and me, though, alright?"

Sasha scoffed, shaking off her dizziness. "Sure," The two walked out of the alleyway and down the street. Sasha became a bit curious. "So…how come you're so casual around me? I noticed the others were a bit on edge around me, but you speak more of your mind," The girl shrugged. "Can't help but be a bit curious…"

"I don't know…I just…feel like I can relate to you a bit." Sasha gaze her a quizzical look, and Artemis quickly dismissed it. "Not that I've lost my memories before, not like you have, but I can see that you feel like everyone's blaming you for being bad because you have something to do with the bad guys and I can relate to that. My bloodline isn't the best on the records, and for the longest time I was afraid of the others finding out because I didn't want them thinking I was bad. Eventually I had to tell and they didn't really seem to care." The teen sighed and rolled her shoulders back. "I guess what I'm trying to say is I know how it feels to feel like everyone suspects you and I want you to know that no one blames you for anything. You're not a criminal, Sasha,"

Sasha looked at Artemis for a long while, a thought echoing in her mind. _What if I am? _Though, hiding her thoughts, the raven-haired girl smiled. "Thank you, Artemis," She said and dipped her head.

A growing silence crept on the two, and the small sounds of cars passing by, occasionally blaring their horns, was the only city sound that Sasha could quickly identify. That and the sound of some man vomiting in a near-by alleyway. "So, who did you meet so far?" Artemis broke the silence. "Careful with the names," She said under a hushed tone.

Sasha thought back to the tour she had with M'gann. The martian had mentioned that their identities were secret for the most part. She told them how they were some kind of heroes that went by titles such as "Miss Martian," and "Aqualad," so they had to have some sort of double life. It was a smart idea in her mind. Kept things a little less annoying. "I met Megan, Kaldur, Conner, you, and…" The last three she met didn't give out their names. Black Canary only shared a few words with the girl, and Robin and Batman neglected to tell. Artemis seemed to get the memo.

"Cool. Some of the others had already gone home then. Today was sort of an off day for us, so a few of us didn't even come. You'll meet them eventually," Artemis assured.

Eventually the pair of girls had arrived at their destination. Artemis was right; there was indeed a twenty-four hour thrift store. Of course, the area wasn't the best, but Sasha didn't appear to be too cautious, but she managed to throw a glance behind her as she loomed through the makeshift isles of the store. Artemis had not only found herself some clothes, but also some for Sasha, and Sasha didn't have much of a hard time finding clothes as well. The girl seemed to very much favor a pair of combat boots she found as well after being told by Artemis that walking around barefoot wasn't the healthiest choice. Probably true, so she stuck with the boots and some simple black 'flip-flops' as the archer had told her.

Eventually, Sasha settled for a few outfits and then changed her own, thanks to permission given by the old lady of a clerk. The adolescent threw off her t-shirt, leaving her black tank on, and pulled on a long, white dress-shirt. The button-up was fashioned in a way to fit her form slightly while still looking like a sweater, it's sleeves were short enough to end messily at her elbows, and the collar wasn't too tight. Sasha pulled on blue-jean shorts that fit her slightly large thighs and topped the outfit off with her combat boots. She turned to stare into the mirror, marveling slightly at the girl staring right back.

Her hair was a dark shade of ebony, really straight with rebel strands adding flare to the due, over grown bangs partially covered her left eye. Sasha's complexion was pale, really pale, making her dark aspects seem impossibly darker. The build of her body was…strange; certainly not the most attractive compared to the tall, curvy models that she had seen on posters around the store. It was a bit muscular, nothing really to show off, really lean and lithe looking with legs and hips built all muscle, possibly due to training in dancing, yoga, or gymnastics based on her basic knowledge of the world and how her legs weren't really 'ripped' more like smoothed over with a few bruises here and there. Her chest wasn't all that impressive, in her opinion at the very least, with a decent proportion, not that she really cared. The girl was short- she knew it, but she wasn't the shortest. Overall, she was slightly 'stocky' but, due to how proportionate it was to her body, it made her easy on the eyes.

Speaking off eyes; Sasha's eyes were the strangest color of amber. Maybe it was yellow, or gold. Somewhere in that variation of colors. Though, if she could look closely, she could spot flecks of fiery red near the blackness of her pupil. What a strange thing.

Sasha sighed, rolled her shoulders back, and exited the dressing room. Artemis was just getting finished with purchasing the clothes they had bought together when the girl came out. The blonde smiled slyly at her appearance and chuckled. "Nice look. Simple and cute," She spotted the boots and smirked. "I love the boots,"

Sasha smirked. "Thanks,"

With a quick thanks towards the clerk, the two left, both carrying their own bags that the woman was kind enough to divide. During their walk back to the Zeta-Beam, they had a small chat, nothing significant. They talked mostly about Sasha, though there wasn't much to tell, courtesy of memory loss. In times of silence, Sasha tried to spot any stars in Gotham. She was successful in finding a few, though they were very dim in the city light.

The scuffling off dragged feet caught both girls attention and they whipped around quickly to find two, rather disgusting men leering at them. Sasha's blood ran cold and she tensed, her gaze hardening into a glare as they approached. Artemis cast a concerned glance at Sasha before focusing on the men. Even from yards away she could smell the alcohol off their bodies as well as the overwhelming stench of trash. This was not good.

"Hey there, ladies!" One of the men whistled. "Watchya doin' in the city all alone?"

"'S not safe at night, 'specially with you'z fine babes," said the other.

Sasha huffed and crossed her arms. "I think we're can handle ourselves without having dumb-witted assholes dogging our steps," She bit furiously. She didn't know where the verbal assault came from, but it felt good.

"Ouch!" The second man howled with a laugh. "Bitch got a bite to her, huh Marco?" He said to his friend, Marco, eyeing Sasha up and down hungrily.

Marco however was getting his eye candy from Artemis, who scowled at him as he scanned her over. She didn't like this at all. "Hey, did I need to force your head to not look directly at my chest?" The blonde snarled. Both men laughed.

"Damn, they both lil' spitfires!" Marco said hauntingly. The other made his approach towards Sasha, easing his grubby hands on her shoulder, leaving a rather aggravating brown streak along the arm, shoulder, and neck of her brand new, white dress shirt.

"C'mon, sweetheart, don't make dis harder than it needs to be," He tried to be charming.

It didn't work.

"Hands off the shirt!"

The man didn't comply. Instead, he tried to touch her cheek. Sasha didn't quite take this well. She grabbed his arm, and spun him around three-sixty before slamming her foot down on his neck, knocking him down to the ground. The action was so sudden, it felt like second nature. She didn't even know where it came from. Amber eyes widened at the sight, and her lips turned up in a half smile. That felt good.

Though, the other man, Marco, didn't take it so well.

"What the fuck?" He snarled. "You little bitch!" Marco charged after the girl, only to have his own arm yanked back and twisted behind his back, courtesy of Artemis. The man doubled over in pain as she pulled his arm further behind his back in an awkward bend that seemed way too painful to be correct. He grunted out in pain as Artemis pursed her lips together, eyes narrow.

"And that's why we don't mess with little girls on the street," She hissed through clenched teeth before kicking the man away and onto the ground. Artemis stepped defensively infront of Sasha, who stared at the man she had taken down with such astonishment. Had she really done that? Both men struggled to stand and when they rose, both men ran away.

"Crazy bitch!" Sasha couldn't quite tell which one screamed into the night as they disappeared down the street. Both girls stood for a moment, staring down the direction they fled, the two breathing heavily and their adrenaline wearing off soon. As it did, they exchanged glances before bursting into laughter.

* * *

**Mount Justice**

**July 16th, 2012 9:51 PM EST**

"_Recongized: Artemis B07; Sasha Volkov A08"_

Both girls came into the Cave, a plastic bag in each hand, laughing their heads off. That definitely caught Robin's attention. He turned away from the holocomupter and eyed them as they discussed their recent endeavors.

"His face was priceless when you threw down his friend! I still can't believe you did that!" Artemis said in a hurry before trying to stifle her laughs. Sasha did the same and finally managed to calm herself. Though, she was a bit speechless.

"I can't believe it either! I mean…" The ebony-haired girl reached for the words before smirking. "I just went on instinct…and it felt good."

Robin approached the two curiously. "What happened?" He asked. The two looked at each other and knew that he wasn't gonna quite like the answer.

"Um…" Sasha started.

"We kinda ran into some idiots looking for trouble and totally kicked the crap outta them?" Artemis offered.

Robin arched a brow in question. The boy opened his mouth to say something before another voice interrupted.

"Nice goin', babe! Wish I could've seen it," The voice was new, obviously someone Sasha hadn't met. Though, she spotted a spark in Artemis's grey eyes and she cast a look towards the direction of the living area of the Cave with a slight smile. There stood a boy, presumably three or two years older than herself, with a puppy-dog-like air and fiery red hair. His eyes were a vibrant, playful green that only supported his ginger-like appearance even more. The boy wore simple clothes, comfortable enough to wear at about nine o'clock at night.

"Wally, what are you doing here?" Artemis asked as she walked up to the one named Wally, placing her hands on her hips as she looked at him with a glare. "I thought you said you had to go home for the night."

Suddenly, Wally's confidence wore off just a bit. The boy's smile faltered just slightly and he chuckled, scratching the back of his neck "Uh…well, Rob and I managed to convince the rents to let us stay at the Cave for the night since…ya' know, vacation?" He offered Artemis a smile. In defeat, she just sighed and rolled her eyes, replacing her glare with a smile.

"I wish you would've told me this earlier, I could've convinced my mom to let me stay," The blond said with a groan. "Speaking of which, I gotta get home," Artemis seemed irritated at the realization and then gave Wally a quick hug and locks her own lips with his. All the while, both Robin and Sasha were closely observing this awkward display of affection.

"I don't get it…" Sasha muttered to the boy beside her. Robin shrugged.

"Their relationship is weird…one minute they act like they hate each other and the next thing you know, they…" He gestured towards them strangely with a small smile. "Yeah…"

Sasha quirked an eyebrow. "Strange relationship," She said, receiving an agreeing nod from the Boy Wonder. "I'm not all too familiar with affection and such, but shouldn't a healthy relationship_ not_ involve hating each other?"

"I dunno. It seems to work for these two. They really like each other,"

"Huh…" Sasha huffed and the short conversation ended when Artemis finally parted from her boyfriend. Wally grinned at her as she murmured a goodbye to him, then the blond turned to the two younger children standing in the room.

"Yeah, I better get going," Artemis muttered to herself and scoffed. She smiled towards Sasha. "It was nice meeting you. Thanks for letting me kidnap you and take you shopping," She chuckled and waved at Robin as she walked over to the Zeta-Beam. "See ya, Rob,"

"_Recognized: Artemis B07."_

With a yellow flash, the teenager was gone, leaving Sasha, Robin, and Wally on their own. Sasha suddenly felt like a fish out of water again. With Artemis, she felt a little more natural after she told her why she was so normal around her, so she could relax better. Now she was with Wally, a boy who she only knew the name off, and Robin, a boy who she didn't even know what his name was. Great.

"Uhh," Wally began nervously and looked over at Sasha, who still stared blankly at the Zeta-Beam. "I'm Wally, otherwise known as Kid Flash,"

"Sasha Volkov,"

"So I've heard,"

"Wait!" Robin suddenly burst out. "Sasha, I forgot to tell you, we found something out about you!"

Sasha's face brightened and she turned around, her mouth open to silent words. "R-Really? What is it?"

"We found out your full name: Aleksandra Volkov. You must've remembered Sasha Volkov because 'Sasha' is a Russian nickname for Aleksandra." He explained as the three walked over to the holographic computer. "We also found out that you apparently lived in Gotham when you were nine. You had homeschool and really good grades, in my opinion at least. That's all we could find so far, though. Batman's trying to get ahold of any loose Russian files, in case you were in Russia for a time in your life." Robin presented the report card files on the screen and Sasha stared at them for what seemed to be the longest time.

"Aleksandra," She whispered. The name didn't bring back any memories, but it struck a chord in her soul. It felt right on her tongue. Eventually the idea of her full name, Aleksandra "Sasha" Volkov, felt right instead of like a curse. Sasha didn't even notice the small smile on her face. Suddenly, it came a bit clear to her. "Volkov. It's a last name derived from 'volk' meaning wolf. Right?"

Robin seemed hesitant to answer. "Uh…yeah- wait, does this mean you can speak Russian?"

"_авось__…_[Maybe…]_"_ The ebony-haired girl muttered in Russian. Her smile grew wider. "Awesome! This means I might be close to recovering my memory!"

"Uh, guys?" Wally said from behind, gaining the young teens' attention. "This is cool and all, it's awesome to meet a Russian, but I just rented a movie On Demand, and I wanna watch it, so maybe get Conner, Megan and Garfield to watch if they want to?"

Recovering her snarky attitude, Sasha scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Right. Well, I gotta put my stuff up, so I'll go see if Megan is in her room and ask, you can go get Conner and…" She couldn't quite remember the other name, considering she didn't meet Garfield on her tour. Though, she faintly remembered M'gann mentioning the young boy. Something about playing a video game. Without another word for the boys, Sasha scampered off to the corridor of all the rooms and quickly found Megan's room. She knocked on the door with her free hand and not a moment too late, the green-skinned girl opened the door, offering Sasha a kind smile.

"Oh, hey Sasha, you're back!" M'gann greeted kindly.

"Yeah…" Sasha chuckled. "Hey, the boys rented a movie and wanted to know if you wanted to join them to watch?"

"That would be great! I'll be out in just a minute!" The martian said and with a kind goodbye, she closed the door and Sasha left the area to her own room.

She closed the door quietly behind her and threw the plastic bags on the floor near the dresser before throwing herself onto the bed. Sasha grabbed her pillow and hugged it close to her as she closed her eyes for just a moment, thinking over the events of this day. She hoped that they would be able to find something that would help her recover lost memories. Though, she was so happy that she found out she could speak Russian; gave her a bit of hope that maybe her amnesia was temporary.

"Надеюсь… [Hopefully…]"

**-REVIEW!**


	4. Chapter Three

**From the Ashes**

**Authors Note: HOLY HIP HUGGERS BATMAN** (I had to do it…)**!**This chapter is **LONG** (It's just nine thousand words…)! That's a good thing…right? Ha! The end of this chapter didn't turn out as well as I had hoped…I dunno, maybe it's just me being paranoid. You guys let me know. Gah! The hype I'm getting from this fanfic is just freakin' awesome. I'm walking around my house just plotting things. Side stories and everything. I think it's safe to say this may turn into a series. Woo! You guys let me know about the idea in the review section! Speaking of which- don't forget to review! You can also favorite and follow if you want! Thank you! I love you!

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own **Young Justice**, **DC** or any other reference I make in **From the Ashes**. I just own the plot and my OCs.

**Chapter Three**

**Mount Justice**

**July 17th, 2012 7:15 AM EST**

Deep sleep was a strange thing. It always seemed to grab hold of you and never let go. When Sasha finally came to, at about seven AM, body heat had built under the thick comforter and she didn't want to leave the warmth of her bed. Amber eyes fluttered open to the ragged stone walls before closing again as she turned under her blankets, delving deeper into a much wanted sleep. Ebony locks messily fell in front of her face and the compression of space soon got to her and she had to poke her face out of the covers to avoid inhaling too much carbon dioxide whilst trapped under the covers. She sighed as light made its way through her closed eyes and finally she gave up on the battle between herself and her restlessness. The girl scowled at the ceiling and let out a yawn as she sat up slightly, propped by her two pillows.

A sudden realization hit the girl like a hot skillet and she got up without any hesitation and started searching through her new clothes for something to wear. After pulling on comfortable clothes, including her dress coat, Sasha ran out of her room and down the hallway, bare feet carrying her to the living room area where she ran into a familiar face. Conner was just coming from the direction of the briefing room, his eyes wide to see that Sasha was up already.

"Uh, everything okay?" He asked with an arched brow.

"Is there a way out? Like to just go outside?" Sasha answered his question with two _other_ questions. This just made him curious.

"Yeah…" Conner muttered. "There's a private beach-"

"How do you get there?"

"The bay door through the hangar. Why?"

Before he could get an answer, Sasha was gone.

* * *

The sun. Sasha felt as though she hadn't felt natural rays of light on her skin in years. When the sixteen-year-old managed to find her way out of the Cave and onto the private beach, she just stood in the sand near the bay and looked at the sun. She huffed a breath before allow a small smile on her lips. Who knew that the sun could make her so happy? It felt like an eternity that she let the sun soak her, the heat didn't both her much, if anything the heat felt great. Then, amber orbs found the large body of water before her. It was so foreign and…frightening in all honesty. Sasha didn't know if she knew how to swim, and she wasn't too willing to find out. She was, admittedly, scared of the deep, dark abyss.

"Sun screen?" Offered a kind voice. Sasha glanced behind her to meet the gentle gaze of M'gann who held a bottle of sun screen towards her. The younger of the two smiled and took her offer with a small 'thanks' before applying sunscreen to any visible skin on herself. M'gann giggled lightly. "Wouldn't want you to burn. I bet it's pretty easy to get sun burned with such a pale complexion, not that it's not pretty- your complexion, I mean."

Sasha just chuckled at her save for any type of offensive words, though she honestly didn't mind being pale. "I wouldn't know if I burn easily," She said nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders.

"Oh…" M'gann muttered. "Sorry…"

"Don't worry about it," The raven-haired girl dismissed. "To be honest, I'm already used to not having my memories. I still want my memories back, of course, but…" She took a deep breath. "I can handle myself," _For the time being._

M'gann smiled. She admired how strong Sasha could be. That strength would help her in the long run. "It's a good thing, but if you need anything just come to anyone. Black Canary can give you therapy sessions for anything you need," She told the girl. There was a flick of defense in her amber eyes and she scoffed, rolling those same eyes.

"I don't think that will be necessary." She said, and M'gann had figured to back out of the subject. It was obvious that Sasha didn't want to talk about it.

Silence overcast the two as Sasha stared on at the sun. M'gann slightly marveled at a new found discovery. In a way, she felt like Sasha's amber eyes burned just like the sun. Full of energy and fire; determination to burn on. M'gann giggled quietly and smiled, trying to guess her personality. It wasn't all too sure. Sometimes she could be kind, with the occasional snide remark, then she could be bitter. She also seemed to have a sharp wit about her, clever with bother her words and actions.

"Why are you staring at me like that?" Sasha interrupted the Martian's thoughts with a sharp, annoyed tone. M'gann looked up into narrowed eyes and smiled sheepishly.

"S-Sorry!" M'gann apologized quickly and looked away. She heard Sasha sigh in defeat.

"Nevermind. My temper's just bad, that's all."

M'gann huffed her laughter. Sasha wouldn't be the first here to have a bad temper.

* * *

It was a little after eleven when Wally and Robin finally woke up from their place on the couch in the lounge. M'gann was in the kitchen, preparing what looked like lunch, Garfield was sitting on the island in the kitchen, and Conner was sitting at the other end of the couch, watching television. The clone was the first to notice their wake, he cast a glance at them and scoffed. "About time you two woke up,"

Robin sat up and yawned. "Any missions today?" He asked. It was Wally's turn to laugh. Leave it to Robin to worry about missions first thing in the morning. Wally shook his head.

"Really?" Came Gar's voice as the boy looked over at his older colleague. "That's what you're worried about?"

M'gann giggled at her 'blood brother' and pushed him playfully. "Well, not everyone wants every day off, you know," She chided jokingly and went back to cooking.

Gar just smiled. "Already noted." He put in. "Besides, I want a mission too, I haven't been on one in almost two weeks!" He gave M'gann a pointed and comical look. "I'm still jealous that you got to go infiltrate the League of Shadows base."

"Trust me, little man, it wasn't that great," Wally said and stood up, walking around the couch and to the bar of the kitchen. "By the way, where's little miss Russian, anyway?" He added.

"And no one answers my question…" Robin muttered under his breath before looking at Wally through his sunglasses. "Really, dude? She has a name,"

"Yeah," Wally let out a bark of laughter. "Her name is Russian,"

"Oh, you mean Sasha?" M'gann questioned, looking over as she chopped cucumbers. "She's at the beach, sunbathing." She said as she scrapped the cucumbers into the salad bowl. "Alright, lunch is ready!"

The two boys left on the couch stood up and approached the kitchen. M'gann had prepared a light meal, salad and sandwiches. No one was complaining. M'gann gave everyone their serving before helping herself, then joined in the chat with the rest of her friends as she sat down next to Conner.

"Kaldur said he isn't going to be here until a little later, Zatanna is coming back from her summer training today, she'll be here later this evening," M'gann began informing her friends as they ate.

"Artemis said she'd be here this afternoon," Wally chimed in with a grin. The Martian chuckled at the ginger before continuing.

"And Raquel will be here later this evening as well," She finally finished, then added with a shrug, "Haven't heard anything from Batman today," M'gann looked at Robin for any news that Batman might have passed onto him. The Boy Wonder shrugged.

"Won't be long until he calls in, though," He said and continued picking at his salad. With that, he got a text. Robin smiled and pulled out his phone. _**I heard about the run-in Artemis and Sasha had in Gotham.**_

Of course he did. Nothing got past the number one dective on Earth, especially in his own city. Robin didn't even bother wondering how he knew. For all he knew, Batman could've been watching them since they went to Gotham. Robin grimaced at a sudden thought. _**Am I in trouble?**_ He replied quickly.

_**Sasha was not allowed to leave the Cave**_, was Batman's reply. Robin groaned. That meant 'yes.'

_**You never said anything!**_

_**It was implied.**_

Of course it was. Robin set down his phone and dropped his head on the counter. Great. His sudden doomed behavior was not unnoticed by his teammates as they eyed him with worry, not knowing about the silent conversation between him and his mentor. "Everything okay, buddy?" Wally asked caution towards his best friend. Robin grumbled something in coherent and then grabbed his phone as another text came in from Batman. "Apparently, Sasha wasn't allowed to go out with Artemis last night…" At this, Wally winced, knowing that Robin was probably in trouble now.

_**I saw what she did to their pursuers. **_Batman texted (Of course, he was watching). Robin was curious now. He didn't really get all the details of the run-in, but whatever Sasha did, it spiked Batman's interest. Another text came in. _**I want to test her. **_Now Robin was really curious. If Batman was onto something about Sasha, then that meant something serious. Though, he didn't like the idea of Bats testing her. She wouldn't stand a chance.

_**Are you sure you should test her?**_ _**Maybe I should.**_ Robin texted back in haste. Though, it was a while before he got a text back. Once again, he question wasn't answered.

_**I'll be there in thirty.**_

"Well…great…" Robin muttered and took a bite of his sandwich. "Batman's going to be here soon. He wants to test Sasha…" He informed and glanced at Wally who stared at him wide-eyed.

"Whoa, seriously? Like, fight her? She won't stand a chance!" He blurted. Robin just nodded in agreement and sighed.

"Should I go get her?" M'gann asked worriedly. The black-haired fifteen-year-old shook his head and got up.

"I'll get her."

* * *

Sasha had moved into a more shady area, slightly favoring the dark over light, and grabbed a stray stick to trace things into the cool sand under the shade. It was all just strange doodles. A swirl with squiggly lines around it, maybe a sun; a make-shift ocean; a lightning bolt; an arrow; then finally…some strange symbol that looked like a flame. She favored the flame a little more than the rest of her drawings and made a note to draw it later on paper.

"Sasha?" A voice carried over to her and she turned her head at the call of her name. Amber eyes met blue ones.

"Hey!" Sasha called and stood up, dusting off sand from her cargo shorts. She walked over the Robin and a sudden thought racked her mind. She hadn't really apologized for attacking him the day before. "Oh-uh, by the way, sorry for, you know…attacking you," The girl took a deep breath and then added quickly and sheepishly, "And kinda holding a knife to your throat,"

"What?" Robin gave her a confused stare behind his sunglasses before remembering the incident. "Oh! Oh, don't worry about it. You weren't really feelin' the aster. Besides, I get it all the time." He forgave her with a shrug of his shoulders. Sasha gave him the strangest look ever and ignored his butchered English.

"That's not exactly a good thing…" She said bluntly. Robin chuckled and scratched the back of his neck.

"Yeah, I guess not, huh?" He joked. Though, Sasha just scoffed and smirked at him, rolling her eyes. The two laughed together, as though they could relate to the situation a bit, though Sasha didn't quite know how. Not that she would remember if she'd been in a situation like that. Well, not quite like that. "Oh, um, by the way I was told to bring you inside,"

Sasha arched an eyebrow and looked at him in question before folding her arms across her chest. "Oh, yeah?" She questioned, a smirk still on her face. "Why's that?" There was a hint to teasing and playfulness behind her words, but…also a familiar sense of mischief. She could sense he was hiding something, and she was determined to find out what.

Robin caught her curiosity and reflected her smirk. "Why so curious to find out, Volkov?" He countered smugly. The game was on.

"I like knowing things in life. Not book wise of course,"

"Don't like books?"

"Street smarts are the only thing you need to survive this world."

"I can prove you wrong."

"Oh really, Birdie Boy?"

Robin scoffed. "Birdie Boy? What kind of nickname is that, Sash?"

"Well, since you have yet to mention a name, I think Birdie Boy fits you perfectly."

"So, you want to know my name?"

"Just a little,"

"Curiosity killed the cat,"

"The cat has nine lives, Birdie Boy."

The two were caught in each other's words, staring at each other with the same exact smugness and arrogance. Though, while Sasha was pure teasing and mischief, Robin couldn't help but feel a little annoyed with how nosy she was. She had a quick wit about her, sharp and as cunning as a fox in all honesty, and she also had the patience to be so persistent. It was obvious she enjoyed the play with words, not that Robin didn't, he just wished she would just drop it.

Robin finally let out a huff of air, "Can we just get inside?" He asked, gesturing towards the bay door behind them.

Sasha scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say, Birdie Boy," She teased before adding, "Don't think I won't get that name outta you," The ebony-haired girl snapped her fingers infront of his face before walking ahead towards the Cave. Robin just blinked behind his shades before shaking his head and laughing.

* * *

Sasha and Robin entered the briefing room and already the girl could feel thick tension in the air. Amber eyes scoped the room before she stopped in her tracks. Something was wrong.

Robin had noticed her sudden halt and stopped by her side. He opened his mouth to say something to her, but she didn't allow at that as she grabbed his arm and pulled him towards and behind her. The motion of darkness was swift and quick, as well as her movements, and as she brought up her arm to guard herself. A black-gloved fist came in contact with her forearm, rattling the bones in her arm. Sasha's jaw clenched to bear the strike before she looked her opponent in the eye- er, well, mask. Amber eyes widened in shock and fear.

"Batman?"

The girl didn't think she'd get a response from the masked vigilante when he swept a high kick at her. Fast reflexes pulled her down into a duck and she pushed Robin back out of harm. She barrel rolled out of her cornered position. She turned quickly only to see the Dark Knight had disappeared. Her awareness heightened just in time for Batman to reappear again in a black blur. Thinking fast, she threw up on arm to block an attack, then another. Each punch thrown pushed her back even farther until the Dark Knight round housed her, catching her small body off guard. The kick threw Sasha across the room and she fell with a hard crash before sliding into a wall.

Sasha sat in a crouch when another fist came at her, she moved quickly so that fist hit the rough wall, leaving a fairly large depression in its wake. That's when it hit her.

This was all a test. She could tell from that single punch that he had the skill and strength to kill or render her unconscious in just two movements. This wasn't an attack at all!

Now picking up her speed, she found a quick strategy. She had to make sure she wasn't cornered. Sasha pushed Batman's arm out of her cornered area before grabbing the neck of his costume, pushed herself off the wall, bringing him along with her. A smile tugged on her lips as the two flew in the air, just two feet off the ground, and she kicked one foot off his chest, letting go of him as she dived for the other end of the room.

Though, the bat had other plans. He grabbed her ankle before she could realize it and stood his ground, spinning her around before launching her to the farthest wall away from them. Sasha's small body hurled towards the wall, but she caught herself on the wall just in time. Breathing heavy, she still held a smirk on her face as adrenaline pumped through her, she didn't even feel the several bruises that formed on her arms, around her ankle, and in her abdomen. Subconsciously, she knew her body would ache later on. Though, right now, she loved fighting.

With all the built-up tension in her body, Sasha kicked herself off the wall and launched herself at Batman. Just before she got to him, he stepped aside to allow her to roll onto the ground. With a quick turn, the smiling girl raised her fist in the air to attack Batman. Having just the same speed as her, Batman whirled and caught her fist. The fight paused. Sasha still held herself with a lopsided smile as her chest rose and fell. Batman grunted his indifference before whirling a kick at her that sent her crashing to the ground. Though, Sasha recovered quickly, too stubborn to give up, and she rose to her feet. She met the steely gaze of Batman behind his mask and the two stared at each other, exchanging silent words and then Sasha dropped her hands to her side, accepting defeat.

Everyone stared. They were all gathered around, watching the fight with opened mouths. Sure, Sasha had lost the fight, but no one expected her to last more than three seconds. Adrenaline pulsed through Sasha's veins. She didn't want to stop fighting, but as the spinning world and her rush slowly began to leave her, she grabbed her bicep in attempt to brace herself for the oncoming pain.

"You fight well for a girl without memory," Batman said towards her. "Which can only mean one thing; you were trained under the League of Shadows,"

Sasha's smirk faded and her eyes narrowed. "I am not an assassin," She hissed bitterly.

"Maybe not, though you could have been trained to be," He told her. "Though, once again this leads to the theory that something went wrong with your hypnosis, causing you to lose your memory. Depending on how strong the hypnosis was, your amnesia could be permanent."

"What?" Sasha gaped, her brow furrowing. "But I remembered something! I remembered that I spoke Russian" The volume of her voice rose just a little.

"It was an insignificant detail in your memory,"

Now that made her snap. "Nothing is insignificant about my memory! It's my _memory_! The only thing I have to tell me who I am!" She was near yelling at the Batman now.

"Who you were," He corrected her calmly.

"Who was I supposed to be?!" Sasha screamed. She didn't notice how much her hands burned and how her body heat rose to impossible levels.

"Enough!" Batman yelled right back at her, the intimidating aura he burned off expanded onto her. Sasha didn't calm down, but she did shut up, too scared to cross the line. Her eyes were narrow and angry at him, and she stood her ground in silence, despite her fear. "There is one way we can try to recover your memories, but it's your decision on whether to go along with the plan," Sasha stayed silent, allowing him to continue speaking. Batman eyed her before turning towards the teens across the room. "M'gann," He called.

The green-skinned girl peered out of her huddle and came forth, casting a nervous and concerned glance at Sasha. "Can you go into Sasha's mind and search for her memories?" Both girls allowed their eyes to go wide.

"She can do that?" Sasha asked absently, her fear now turned into curiosity and hope. M'gann just blushed slightly.

"Martians have telepathy," The girl turned to Batman with a worried look. "But what if I can't do it, I still have to train and I might lose control,"

"Do it."

All eyes were on Sasha now as she looked determined at M'gann and Batman. "It's worth a try, right? If she can get into my mind and recover my memories, then I'm all for it." She said eagerly.

M'gann pursed her lips. "I don't know. There's no telling what damage could be done if I'm not successful. Even if I do go inside your mind, you'd have to come with me," She explained hurriedly. Sasha arched a brow and scoffed.

"Then that's a chance I'll have to risk,"

"There's no need to be reckless," Batman growled, causing the Russian to shift her narrowed gaze towards him. She didn't realize how rash she was being. This was the delicacy of her mind, they were talking about. "I don't want any action towards this until tomorrow, when both myself and Martian Manhunter are present to supervise."

Sasha knew she was too stubborn to fully accept this. Though, the laws of nature came to her: a hunter has to patient to leap upon its prey, otherwise things could get nasty. The girl wouldn't dare risk this opportunity to slip from her because of short tempers; she was already hanging off a cliff with Batman after screaming at him. Having to suck up her pride, Sasha sighed and turned the other cheek. "Fine. I'm willing to wait, but don't think I'll change my mind by then, Bats," She said, her tone slightly defeated but still holding her smart-ass attitude. Once again, the corner of her mouth tilted up to show a smirk as she crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her head to the side, allowing her bangs to sweep away from her left eye, revealing it on a rare occasion.

Sasha saw Batman relax only a little, not giving away the fact that he was a bit tense. He knew of her temper, very observant, she'd have to take note of that for later use. "Alright then, I'm off for today, as far as the Team is concerned there are no missions. Feel free to have a free day until further notice." Batman informed the others before, with a slight swish of his cape, he left the room to stand in the Zeta-Beam.

"_Recognized: Batman, 02." _

Sasha's shoulders dropped an inch and she sighed, running her hand through her hair to get it back in place. "It's not often that a fox survives a run-in with a wolf," She muttered lowly to herself with a huff. "Lady Luck must be on my side today," This time Sasha spoke aloud and she turned to face the others. "How'd I do?"

"How did you do?" Wally repeated with a choked scoff. "That was freaking amazing!"

Sasha chuckled. "I lost. On both accounts,"

"Still," Robin came forward and rested a hand on her shoulder. "You stood your ground and avoided tipping Batman off- well, for the most part,"

"A smart girl knows her boundaries and limits, and every woman knows that to get what she wants from a man, she has to let said male creature to think he won," She explained coyly and then added with a shrug, "I wouldn't say I outsmarted him, Batman knew I was trapped and I had no choice to accept his terms, otherwise I could've risked not having a chance with M'gann's telepathy. He was testing me the whole time to see if I would crack,"

Everyone looked at her in surprise other than Robin. He'd known that Batman would pull that kind of stunt, though he had to admit, he didn't think Sasha would figure it out so quickly. Though, he couldn't shrug off how she pushed him out of the way when Batman attacked. Was that a test of trust and sacrifice? More than likely. Clever and very much like Batman. Suddenly, Sasha hissed in pain and she grabbed at her arm. M'gann stepped forward to get a closer look at her injuries as she pulled off her white dress coat, revealing a large bruise all along her forearm.

"Well, I did learn something from that little fight, though," Sasha winced and glanced up at the others. "Don't mess with the Batman,"

"Huh," Garfield huffed. "Noted." The boy bounded over to her to help M'gann. The two helped Sasha walk over to the lounge and kitchen area.

Sasha managed to sit up on the counter to let M'gann mend to her bruises as she engaged small talk with the others. A part of her attention was on M'gann's small instructions, another part divided to her chit chat, and the last of her attention was on a flickering tea-light as she played with the small fire. She glided her hand over the flame, smiling in marvel at the small thing. It's heat didn't affect her, and she didn't even really seem to notice; no one else did. Curious, she held her hand over the flame for a while. She wasn't burning. Amber eyes widened as she examined her hand. How strange.

"Sasha?" M'gann's voice snapped the girl out of her trance. Sasha turned her head to meet the martian's gaze in a silent response. "I'm going to press down on this bruise right here," It was her largest bruise on her left forearm. "I want you to tell me when it hurts most, alright? Try to bear with me," Sasha nodded before M'gann began to press down on the center of the bruise with both her thumbs. It didn't take long for a sharp pain to sear her entire arm and the ebony-haired girl let out a quick gasp before clenching her fists and jaw in reaction, her gasp now a hiss. With concerned eyes, M'gann looked up and sighed. "You might have a stable fracture in your forearm, nothing serious; we'll just have to bind it up to keep the bones from going out-of-place while it heels. I'll get you a cast soon, but until then, bandages will have to do,"

Sasha nodded her understanding and allowed M'gann to securely wrap that area of her arm in bandages. With her free hand, Sasha ate the sandwich that was prepared for her as she continued talking with Conner.

"You really have a temper, huh?" He questioned with a chuckle. Sasha snorted.

"Just a bit, guess it's more my 'wild' side." She said and the two laughed. "I just lost my head, that's all,"

Conner shrugged. "It happens," He said in understanding and turned to look at Robin who sat on the couch with Wally. "Hey, so any idea what the outcome was on Batman's test?" The Boy Wonder shrugged before flipping the channel on the TV.

"Aw, c'mon! The Summer Olympics? Isn't there something better on?" Wally groaned and snatched after the remote in his friend's hands, though he was unsuccessful in claiming it.

"What's wrong with the Olympics?" Robin gave the speedster a pointed look. Wally deadpanned, he didn't give the younger an answer before pouncing on them and the fight for the TV began. "Dude, what the hell are you doing? Cut it out!"

"Gimme the remote!" The ginger strained for the remote before both boys fell off the couch and rolled about on the floor. All eyes were on the commotion now, M'gann was giggling to herself, Conner and Sasha just gave them a questioning look, and Garfield…

"Dog pile!" The boy howled before joining into the fight. It was an interesting sight, seeing the three of them roll across the floor in an epic battle for the remote. Well…okay, not so epic, but it still earned a genuine laugh from Sasha. She couldn't hold it back as she doubled over and laughed. Everyone looked at her as she tried to stop herself and when she did, she looked at the three boys with a smile.

"It's decided. You guys were make the weirdest brothers,"

* * *

"Hey! We should have a beach party today!"

"Hello, Megan! I wish I could've thought of that," M'gann said as she finished up the last of the dirty dishes. Sasha looked back from her place on the couch to view the conversation between Wally, M'gann, and Garfield.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Garfield questioned with an arched brow. "You and Robin don't exactly live here twenty-four seven, do you even have your swim suit?"

The speedster gave a wide smile. "Well, I didn't pack those and a bunch of party food for nothing!"

The three remaining on the couch, Conner, Robin, and Sasha, all deadpanned at this news. "He's been planning this the whole time?" The three said in unison with glum tones.

Sasha huffed and stood up. "I'm off to the library," She muttered and grabbed her jacket as she strayed off away from the lounge. Though, Wally was of course quicker than she. Within a second's notice, he was already infront of her. The girl frowned.

"C'mon! I thought you didn't like books," The ginger whined. Sasha crossed her arms and threw him an amused look.

"I don't like _academic_ books, though I like a story or two. That's beside the point, I'm not going there to _read_," She sneered. Before anyone could question why she would go to the library if not to read or research, she spoke again. "I just need to find some…stuff…" In all honesty, Sasha didn't quite know what she was looking for. Though, she was intent on finding something to draw with.

"Oh, no," Garfield said and grabbed her arm, pulling her towards the hangar. "You're not getting out of this, Sash,"

"Garfield!" M'gann scolded, her hands on her hips. Gar just flinched a little before looking up at his sister with a sheepish smile.

"No, no, it's fine. I'll go…" Sasha said and waved M'gann off. The Martian sighed and gave her a grin of approval. "Though, I didn't make it a point to buy a swim suit when Artemis and I went to Gotham last night…"

M'gann stood by her side. "No problem, you can borrow one of mine,"

With that said, the two girls walked together to M'gann's room. The travel was quick and quiet, so it allowed Sasha to think over recent events. She finally realized how rash she was by arguing with the Dark Knight. She should have calmed down. Luckily enough, she was in the right mind to know how far to go in the argument. She had to learn how to get this temper thing under control. Otherwise, it could quite well be the death of her. Finally, the two approached M'gann's room.

"Sorry about Wally and Gar's behavior," M'gann said sheepishly as they walked into her room.

Sasha shrugged. "They're boys, what can you do?" She chuckled with a grin. The ebony-haired girl sat on the bed and crossed her legs, placing her hands on her knees. "So, whatchya got?"

The redhead chuckled and searched through her closet. "Hmm, I have this old black one that might fit you," She said and tossed Sasha a black two-piece. "Go ahead and try it on in my private bathroom over there," M'gann gestured to a near-by door. Sasha smirked, lucky her to have a private bathroom.

Sasha leapt up from her spot, with the two-piece in hand, and walked into the bathroom, once inside, with the door closed, she undressed. As she slipped off her top, a burning-like sensation traced along her back. It was sudden and caused her to turn her head to look at her back. Her eyes widened at the long, deep scar that traced diagonally across her back. Why didn't she notice sooner? A small hand traced the deep, pink line and she winced aloud at the pain that shot through her body. The wound was still fresh, probably a little over a month old. What had she done to earn this?

"Sasha? Is everyone okay?" M'gann voice, muffled through the door, called into the bathroom. Sasha's head snapped up and she quickly staggered to get the swim suit on.

"I-I'm fine! Do you have something I can wear over this…I don't feel too comfortable…ya' know, like this," The fifteen-year-old called back. She didn't want to deal with the questioning and suspicion that would come with this scar.

"Uh…" M'gann sounded skeptical at first before obliging. "Yeah, I think I have a matching pool dress, let me go get it," It didn't take long for her to find the pool dress and open the door just a bit to allow Sasha to snatch the black pool dress. Throwing a quick 'thanks', she slipped the dress on and made sure it covered the majority of her back. Successfully, it covered her large, ugly scar. Pleased now, she opened the door. M'gann was already dressed in her own suit. Hers was a bit more colorful than Sasha's, adding more to her kind personality.

"We should get going," She suggested and the two left her room and started to the briefing room. There they were met by everyone, including Artemis who had just arrived. She stood by the Zeta-Beam with her arms crossed, Wally's arm draped around her shoulder. She was having a quick conversation with the other boys when M'gann and Sasha finally walked up. Her face brightened a bit with a smile. "Artemis! Glad you could make it," M'gann greeted with a hug.

"Hey, glad to be here," Brown eyes shifted to Sasha who waved. "I heard about your little fight with Bats," She said accusingly. Sasha chuckled.

"It was a lot scarier than it sounds," The girl admitted and shuffled her feet. "I was almost convinced Batman was trying to kill us,"

"Is that why you guarded me?" Robin asked before scoffing. "Didn't know you cared so much about me, Sash,"

"Ha!" Sasha barked and placed her hands on her hips. "You wish, Birdie Boy, I just thought you wouldn't handle it against Batman,"

"He's my mentor, I'm pretty sure I could've lasted a lot longer than you have,"

Wait. Robin was Batman's…protégé? Sasha wasn't entirely informed of this. Though, that didn't hold back her snickering voice.

"Is that a challenge, Bird Brain?"

"Bird Brain? Really, the names you come up for me,"

"Speaking of names-"

"Uh, guys?" Garfield interrupted, his brow arched and a hand raised in question. "Beach party, remember?" The two turned their heads to look at those staring at them. Artemis and Wally had the largest grins. Sasha sighed and crossed her arms, looking the other way.

"Right…" Robin muttered. With that settled, the group began to make it toward the bay door. Though, a familiar hand rested on Sasha's shoulder, only this time she didn't flip the person over. "By the way, yes, that was a challenge, Sash," The Boy Wonder's voice murmured to her and she gave him a lopsided grin.

"You're on, Birdie Boy,"

"I look forward to it,"

* * *

Sasha traced things into the sand and then let it all wash away as the sea water swelled. She stayed near the shore and didn't dare go into any water as high as her knees. It didn't take long for her to confirm her fears for the water, though the others were unaware of this. Whenever someone would ask to come into the water, she just waved off their offer, telling them she wasn't feeling all too well. Wally and Conner were setting up some sort of…net on the far side of the beach, and Robin and M'gann were trying to get the grill to work. Apparently it was a gas grill, though they didn't have any gas, so instead they tried to convert it to a coal burner. Artemis and Garfield were out swimming.

Sasha couldn't help but feel a bit unsocial, being by herself, curled up and tracing things into wet sand. Though, her mood turned up when Aqualad- er, Kaldur had made his appearance by her side.

"I could not help but sense your uneasiness…" He hesitated on her name, "Sasha?" It was a question that she answered with a nod before speaking.

"I'm just not feeling too well, I have a bit of a head ache after my fight with Batman…and well my body hurts a lot," She replied with a nervous laugh, trying to hide the truth of her discomfort.

Though, Kaldur didn't seem to buy her little lie. "Excuse me for prying, but that's not the true reason why you refuse to go into the water, is it?" He inquired. As if that didn't freak her out. This guy could read her like an open book! Though, surprisingly, she didn't raise her voice in attempt to defend herself. She felt comfortable talking to him for some reason. Maybe it was that…sort of big-brother-like air about him.

She scoffed lightly and smiled. A bit amused how easily he saw past her guarded actions. "Yeah, I guess you could say I have a small case of aquaphobia," She admitted freely and then gave a nervous smile. "Don't tell the others, okay?"

"Of course," Kaldur nodded. "Though, the water isn't all that dangerous,"

"Says the guy with gills," Sasha said bluntly with bark of laughter. "I dunno, I just feel like I need to stay away from the _agua_- or at least most of it,"

"I see," The Atlantean said and didn't ask any further of the subject. Instead, he sat down and started a new conversation. "I hope you've been copping well with staying here, even if it is temporary,"

Sasha nodded her answer. "Yup! Good rest, good food, good company. Even if I do get attacked every now and then," She said, noting the fact that in the two days that she's been at Mount Justice she's been attacked three times. Okay, so the first time wasn't necessarily an attack…

Kaldur laughed at her last comment and waved away her worries. "I suppose we've learned to get used to things like that around here," He said modestly. Sasha scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"You and Bird Brain both," She murmured, shaking her hand. "I swear, with influences like you guys I'll surely go looking for trouble one of these days," The girl shrugged. "Not that it's a bad thing, though," She continued to trace symbols into the sand. Things she'd never seen before popped into her hands. It looked like a bunch of runes or some sort of alien language. She didn't mind it much.

The eldest of the two opened his mouth to respond, though that response was interrupted by Wally's sudden outcry, "Net's all set up! Let's play some ball!" When nobody came to the court, he frowned. "C'mon! Bats could arrive at any moment with a surprise mission!"

"Chill, Baywatch," came Artemis's reply as she trudged out of the water. "You minus well put in bold print on the head of the newspaper telling everyone who were are," She grumbled as she rung out her hair. Joined by Robin, M'gann, and Garfield, she ran over to the court. It didn't take long for Kaldur and Sasha to exchange glances before they too got up and joined the others by the net.

"You ever played volleyball, Sash?" Wally asked as she approached. Sasha deadpanned at the boy. Her sudden glower made him realize his mistake. "Oh, right,"

"Smooth, Kid Mouth," Robin joked and turned to face Sasha. "The game's simple, just don't let the ball touch the ground on your side and try to get it on the ground on the other side. You can't catch the ball, you have to hit it to try and make it over the net," He tossed her a white ball, and thanks to fast reflexes, she caught it.

"Sounds simple enough," Sasha shrugged.

"Great!" Robin smirked. "You serve,"

The girl was suddenly oblivious. "What?" Her absent question was left in the dust as the others parted to form teams. Artemis, Gar, M'gann and Sasha were one team, and Robin, Wally, Kaldur and Conner were the other. Artemis told Sasha were to stand and gave her more narrowed down rules than the vague ones Robin had exchanged with her. After given the 'okay' Sasha served and the game began. The teens scrambled left and right as each struck at the ball as it bounced from person to person. Conner was the first to earn his team a point, thanks to an impressive spike he performed.

The teams switched their position and it was Gar's turn to serve. Sasha met Robin at the net, familiar, lopsided grins and smirks on their faces. "May the best man win," He said smugly. Sasha rolled her eyes and snickered.

"Don't you mean the best woman?" She countered with a sneer.

"Unlikely," The bird said simply.

"You wish, Bird Brain,"

"Let's go!" Gar called and the two stepped back into their positions, eyeing each other as they did. It was official. The rivalry between the two was infinite. Gar served the ball and the second round began. The play lasted a good fifteen minutes with the teens sprawling across the sand and making near-impossible moves just to get a hit. It amazed Sasha how agile they all were, even more surprised at how close her own abilities matched theirs. It was clear they had more control with their bodies, whereas Sasha could only improvise due to lack of the knowledge of real 'moves.'

"Sash, to your right!" M'gann called. Quick with her wits, Sasha dived to her right just in time to hit the ball on her forearms. Though, it wasn't the best idea. Instead of landing like usual, her impulse was to yank her wounded arm to her chest and fall on her back in the sand. She felt her arm numb itself and the pain settled in, Sasha curled up in a ball, cradling her arm. She shouldn't have done that. Whilst the ball was still the in air, Artemis leapt over Sasha and spiked the ball to the other side of the net before landing and turning to run towards the injured adolescent.

"Sasha, are you alright?" Artemis asked as she helped her sit up. Sash still held her arm defensively and had a wince on her face, but she managed a small, pained smile.

"That was an idiot move for me to make," She chuckled. Artemis huffed and her shoulders sagged as she returned the smile.

"I forgot about your arm," M'gann said as she crouched to their level. "Is it alright? Maybe you should sit out this game," She rested a hand on Sasha's shoulder and helped her to her feet.

"Yeah, maybe I should," Sasha said with a short nod. "But then your numbers would be odd,"

"I'll step out!" Robin offered with a wave of his hand and Wally shot the two a…strange grin. The ebony-haired girl glowered at him. Of all people to even the odds, it had to be him? She sighed and shook her head before walking over to the shore were she was before. Robin followed not long after and the others proceeded with their game. He sat down next to Sasha and watched her as she began to trace things into the sand again. "So, why won't you swim?" He inquired, earning a glare from Sasha.

"I'm not telling you," She stated immaturely. To top it off, she stuck out her tongue at the boy and continued with her drawings.

"So stubborn," Robin commented with a chuckle.

"Why'd you step out of the game?" Sasha questioned, ignoring his infuriating comment.

He answered in a mocking tone, "I'm not telling you," and stuck out his tongue. Sasha rolled her eyes at him and shook her head.

"You're a dork," She said simply and flicked the bridge of his nose. Bewildered by the action, he stared at her and blinked for a moment before displaying his smirk again.

"And proud of it," He boasted. "How's your arm?"

Chuckling, she took a while to answer, and a smile spread across her face. "Honestly, I was almost tempted to plan a way to land a good punch on Batman," She admitted. Robin laughed at her reply.

"Good luck with that,"

"No kidding, huh?"

The two sat in silence together, staring at the horizon as it darkened. By then it was probably five PM and it wouldn't be long until the sun would begin to set, casting colors of all kinds into the darkening sky. Sasha took a deep breath and exhaled, her body relaxing for a moment to relish in the peace. Well, maybe their rivalry wasn't technically a rivalry.

"We should get your arm checked out tomorrow. A simple x-ray, might need a cast, you should be fine if it's just a hairline fracture," Robin explained. Once again, Sasha didn't know the full meaning of these terms. Ah, well. "You'll need pain killers though, that'll definitely hurt like hell in the morning."

Sasha scoffed. "Yay," She said sarcastically. "As if it wasn't enough that the rest of my body was killing me," The two shared their laughter before Robin got up.

"I'm gonna get you some ice,"

The Boy Wonder left the scene through the bay door, leaving Sasha on her own now. The touch of a wet nose on her shoulder told the girl that she wasn't quite alone. When she looked over her shoulder, she came face to face with Wolf. Sasha grimaced and with her unwounded arm, she reached over and placed a hand on his muzzle. The large animal made an accepting growl before lying down by her side and she continued the pet Wolf on the top of his head.

"Ya' know, I'm still not sure whether or not I'm a dog or cat person," She said to the canine. He gave her a disapproving growl and a short glare that caused her to laugh lightly. "Don't worry, you're a wolf, not a dog or a cat," Sasha assured Wolf and he huffed and closed his eyes in contentment.

"Zatanna, Rocket! You're here!" M'gann's voice found its way over to Sasha and she turned to see a young girl with long black hair and blue-grey eyes walking out of the Cave, followed by a darker-skinned woman, possibly older, her hair had a boy-cut, but it matched her somehow. The first girl was probably Sasha's age, definitely taller. Both Sasha stood up to join the others and Wolf padded over to his owner that had finally managed to make the grill work. Flames erupted above the metal rack that covered the basin of the grill.

"Hey guys!" The dark haired girl replied with a wave, smiling slightly as she approached them.

"Wasup?" The other chimed in and stopped by her side. Blue-grey eyes found Sasha and flickered with something she couldn't quite recognize. Familiarity? Knowing? "Uh, who's that?" The dark-skinned woman asked as she leaned to the side to peer at Sasha. Sasha shifted in her spot and looked down at her bare feet. She was still holding onto her arm like it was a lifeline.

"Sasha Volkov, fifteen-year-old amnesia victim," She quipped a little too enthusiastically. Both girls arched a brow at the girl before the younger one introduced herself.

"Zatanna Zatara," Zatanna said and the two shook hands. "That over there's Raquel," Raquel waved kindly.

"Hey, Sash, nice to meet you,"

"Likewise,"

"How was training?" Artemis asked Zatanna, breaking off the introductions. Zatanna scowled.

"Hard to cope with," She muttered gruffly, though her expression lightened, if only a little. "I think I'll just stick to the books for now,"

M'gann rested a hand on her shoulder, "It was worth a shot," She said with a weary smile that Zatanna managed to reflect. Sasha didn't quite understand the situation, and she thought it was best to keep out of it. If Zatanna wanted to talk about it, she'd talk about it.

"I guess," She shrugged and looked around. "Where's the Boy Wonder?"

"Right here," Robin was behind her, a bag of ice in one hand as he walked up to them. "Hey Z, how's it hangin'?" He asked as Zatanna turned and the two hugged each other. They parted shortly after.

"I'm doing pretty good, you?"

"Definitely feeling the aster," He replied with a smirk.

Zatanna chuckled and rolled her eyes. "You've gotten taller in the last two months," She told him and placed a hand on her hip.

"Really?" He questioned and compared heights with the magician. Sure enough, he was about half a head taller than her. "Huh, learn something new every day," He turned his gaze to Sasha and tossed her the ice. "You owe me,"

"Don't hold it against me, Bird Brain…" She said, trying to sound miserable while she sneered at the boy. She placed the ice pack on her arm and pain like she'd never thought existed shot up her arm. Sasha shrieked and threw the ice pack away from her before grasping her arm and clutching it to her chest. The cold of the ice felt like liquid nitrogen on her skin, so cold it burned like hell.

"Sasha! Are you okay?" M'gann asked, concern covering her tone. A sudden cry escaped her lips. "Your hand!" Sasha looked down to see both her hands a light with the strange runes and patterns, as well as the center of her chest and her feet. She gasped and gawked at the runes that glowed with the fiery colors of red and gold. This was definitely unnatural.

"You're a metahuman?" Wally questioned, his eyes wide.

"That's not the works of a metagene," Zatanna clarified. "I thought I felt a strong mystical power in you,"

"W-What is this?" Sasha breathed and examined the rune son her hands.

Zatanna took her hand and started tracing the runes. "I haven't seen anything like this before except in books, these runes are that of an elemental,"

"Elemental?" Sasha repeated, her tone worried.

"Basically a human personification of the elements. The runes and patterns show how advanced you are in your elemental magic and trust me, this isn't all that advanced." She explained and down at her. "My best guess is that your element is fire, considering how you reacted to the ice,"

"It…It felt like someone just shot liquid nitrogen into my arm," Sasha said with a grimace.

"Sounds about right," Zatanna said simply, trying to smile.

"So you're saying she can control fire?" Robin asked as he stepped up. Zatanna shrugged and ran a hand through her hair.

"In all honesty, I don't know. These are basic runes, more than likely she's a beginner in magical arts, even still the way it works isn't in my line of work." She said and frowned at Sasha. "Sorry,"

The fiery runes began to dim and Sasha shook her head, displaying a smile on her face. "Let's try it out," Everyone's eyes widened at her sudden enthusiastic personality. She dusted herself off, for no apparent reason, and shouldered her way past the others to go to the flaming grill.

"W-What are you doing?" Garfield protested and grabbed her arm and pulled her back. Sasha's amber eyes narrowed.

"I'm going to stick my hand in the fire?" She asked as though it wasn't obvious.

"What?" Artemis gasped.

"Don't be reckless!" Robin protested. Sasha smirked and shrugged her shoulders.

"If I'm thinking clearly, fire is reckless," Sasha said simply and both her eyes and runes flickered like fire.

"Noted," Garfield quipped and sighed. "But you might not be thinking clearly," Sasha shrugged and held out one hand towards the grill. She concentrated on the heat that the lit coals burned off, breathing in and out as she closed her eyes. The embers off the coals began to flare and come to life as they sparked into flames that swirled out of the grill and through the metal cover. Flaring about like dragons breath, the flames down their way to Sasha's palm and engulfed her outstretched hand. The heat was welcoming like a camp fire. It didn't burn her, though she could feel the tongues of the flames slightly burn the skin above the first half of her forearm. At that feeling she opened her eyes and waved the fire back to the grill where it delved back into the coals, lighting them ablaze once again.

"That…worked…" Conner muttered as he stared at the coals and then back at Sasha. Wolf huffed as though he were to laugh at the comment.

Sasha looked at her hand as the rune dimmed out of sight. "I think the runes not only act to show how advanced I am, but also where I came be touched by fire." She said as she touched the small red burns on her upper forearm. "So, I'm not entirely immune to fire…"

"This…is so weird," Artemis murmured and Wally nodded slowly to agree. Sasha chuckled and gave a shaky smile. She was still trying to take this all in.

"Well, that was fun," She said and laughed. Robin picked up the stray ice pack and grimaced.

"So, no ice pack?"

**-REVIEW!**


	5. Chapter Four

**From the Ashes**

**Author's note:** Okay, I promise that as far as Sasha's elemental magic stuff, the magic doesn't take over the plot, I promise. Sasha's affinity with fire, Zatanna, Dr. Fate, and maybe a few tiny other things, is as far as I'll go with the magic. To me, if the magic completely took over the story, then it wouldn't feel much like a YJ Fanfic…in my opinion at least. Speaking off which, here's a little something to explain Sasha's powers, or at least what she can do right now: Sasha cannot produce her own flame, however one spark is all she needs to make a huge ass fire, other than that, you could say she's like a Firebender from the Avatar series. She can levitate fire and form it on her body to throw punches or kicks. Throughout the series she will learn new abilities.

Now that that's done, and I do believe this is my longest Author's Note in the four chapters I've posted of **'From the Ashes**,' it's time to get down to our daily business! Thank you guys for your reviews, favorites, and follows! They really do help and I urge all readers to do either of the three. All reviews WILL be replied to so long as I remember, any reviews given by people without accounts will be replied to at the bottom of each chapter. Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoy! (Yay! A short chapter!)

**Disclaimer:** I do NOT own **Young Justice**, **DC** or any other reference I make in **From the Ashes**. I just own the plot and my OCs.

**Chapter Four**

_"Fire is a killer. Sometimes, what's left behind can grow better than  
the generation before...If given the chance." -Simba from The Lion King II: Simba's Pride_

**Mount Justice**

**July 18th 1:05 PM EST**

"Interesting," Martian Manhunter murmured as Sasha bounced a ball of flame in her good hand, the other arm was unfortunately in a sling. The hero kept his distance away from the fire, precaution of being Martian, as he marveled at the girl's newfound power. "I do not believe I have seen a power like this before," He told Batman who was at his side. The Caped Crusader was watching Sasha closely with narrowed eyes. The most interesting detail of her power was the brilliant runes and tattoos that burned on her hands and feet, as well as the flame-like symbol that glowed in the center of her chest.

Batman turned his steely gaze on Manhunter. "Do you think this will prove a problem while Miss Martian goes into her subconscious?" He asked gruffly.

"It should not, though I am curious as to what the setting of her mind is," The other responded. Sasha looked up and returned the flame back to the candle by her side, causing her tattoos to dim back into the pale complexion of her skin.

The girl arched a brow. "Um, setting of my mind?" She repeated, curious about what that meant.

"Everyone has a different setting in their mind," M'gann explained and strained for the right words to explain. "Uh, think of it as some sort of," She paused. "projection of a place in your mind to act as a home for your thoughts," She had finally got the right explanation and smiled encouragingly.

"O-kay…" Sasha muttered and summoned back the flame, playing with it again as it levitated over her palm. After discovering that if the fire would spread far enough her skin would burn, she resulted to keeping the fire off her body. She also found out that it only too one spark for her to make a huge flame. Though, the discovery almost lead to catching a tree on fire. It was then proven that having an Atlantean around is very useful. "So, how's this going to work?" She inquired before her thoughts got the best of her.

"When I go into your subconscious, I'll have to take you with me and there might be a block of some sort in the setting, like a gate or maybe a foe to fight. We'll have to get rid of the block to further progress into your mind," M'gann was once again the voice that explained the concept of recovering Sasha's memories. "We'll try to take care of all the blocks in one go, but-" The Martian began but Sasha had interrupted her.

"'We will take care of all the blocks," She corrected with a determined voice.

M'gann sighed and managed a smile before nodding sternly. "Right,"

"Then it's settled," Batman growled. "You two will go into Sasha's mind to attempt," He made sure the word found its way over to Sasha. "to recover her memories. Should you run into any problems, M'gann, get out of there. Martian Manhunter will observe your mental awareness in case you cannot get out of a severe situation and he will do what he can to get you out by force,"

The three, M'gann, Sasha, and Martian Manhunter, all nodded their consent before Sasha laid down on her back on the cold, metal bed that she sat on. M'gann's eyes began to glow and she levitated off the ground as though the gravity around her no longer mattered. The youngest sighed a worried sigh before closing her eyes.

_Sasha's senses were heightened in her mind. Before she could open her eyes, she felt her own raw emotions wash over her, emotions that had hidden away from her external self. She felt confusion, fear, anger, sadness, and wonder. The feeling was like nothing she'd thought she'd feel before, the emotions were overwhelmingly powerful. The scent of burnt wood lifted over to Sasha's subconscious self and she opened her eyes to a horrible sight. It was a forest, literally. What was once probably a lush, green forest was now reduced to ash._

_Dying embers dimmed out of their fiery brilliance in the unmoving air and soot fell upon the dead land. As far as the eye could see there was burned and destroyed brush. Tears clouded Sasha's vision. This was the truth of fire; destruction and chaos. An eminent death now unleashed upon a once thriving world. There was nothing. No memories. No hidden past. Just the ugly truth that Sasha never wanted to face. The sky was black. No moon shined its ever luminescent glow in this decaying world. _

"_There's nothing," M'gann's voice whispered in a choked sob. Sasha turned her head to see the green-skinned girl, her face shaded and hurt. She could feel it too, the emotions of Sasha's subconscious. "Sasha," Her voice cracked and she turned to meet the broken gaze of the girl whose mind she was in. "There's nothing left of your past…I'm sorry," _

_Sasha couldn't take it anymore. Her knees gave out and she fell in the ash, the fallen soot blackened her skin at contact. She covered her face in her hands and doubled over. "No…" She sobbed. "How can this happen?" Her voice was wrecked and broken. Torn over by the sight that her past was gone. Everything that she ever was, was completely erased. _

"_Sasha!" M'gann's voice tried to portray assurance. "You have to look forward now, there may be nothing behind you, but look at the new memories you've made!" She cried, though her words didn't get through to Sasha as she sobbed. There was nothing left for her. Nothing but a forgotten past. _

"_Nothing. That's all there is…" Sasha's voice was muffled behind her hands. M'gann kneeled down to her level and grabbed her shoulders, shouting at her now to turn around and look forward. She didn't. She couldn't. Whatever determination that burned inside her had flickered out._

Once again, Amber eyes slowly opened, the wetness of tears on her cheeks greeting her wake. Without a word, she numbly sat up and stood off the bed. Her eyes cast downward in a blank and teary-eyed stare. M'gann was awake as well, and once she was aware of her surroundings, she levitated to Sasha's side and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Though, despite her sympathy, Sasha shouldered away from M'gann and began to walk towards the corridors when an infuriating voice stopped her.

"Well? What did you recover?" Batman growled, unaware of the events just displayed before her. Sasha's fists clenched until they were white and she was visibly trembling.

She bit her lip before answering with a hurt voice, "There was_ nothing_ to recover," With that, the girl fled the scene and ran to her room, leaving the others bewildered in her wake.

Batman turned to M'gann for a report. The Martian girl frowned and looked the other way. "We went in and," She pursed her lips. "it was as if someone destroyed all her memories. We couldn't recover anything of her past," She informed and swallowed the knot in her throat. "Whatever it is, it's permanent,"

"That's what I feared." The vigilante grumbled and turned to face Martian Manhunter and Black Canary who had just arrived to start the training session with the Team. "Then we'll have to continue technical research on her, we can no longer rely on her memories to give any hints on the case for the kidnappings,"

Black Canary's eyes widened in anger at his words. "That's what you're worried about?" She snarled. "The damn kidnappings? How about the broken girl who just ran out of here?" Dinah pointed in the direction that Sasha fled. "She's just been shown that she has no memory and that she can never get it back and your worried about a damn case?!"

"Black Canary…"

"No! I don't want to hear your bullshit!" Before Batman could do anything, the blond had disappeared from the room and off to the corridors.

M'gann just watched in silence and looked at the candle that had flickered out. *

* * *

Sasha ran into her room, the door sliding shut behind her as she threw herself on the bed. She pulled a pillow close to her and bit back sobs as her body shook with every silent cry. How had it come to this? Tears stained her cheeks red as she allowed them to fall freely, no longer seen by prying eyes. Sasha curled up, still clutching to the pillow to force out all her aggression, and tried to wish it all away, either wanting to go into a dreamless sleep or to wake up from a terrible nightmare. She didn't which one.

There was a knock on the metal door. "Sasha?" A kind and familiar voice called into the room, muffled by the metal between them. "It's me, Black Canary." Sasha didn't answer. She was too busy with trying to block out the world, numbing her senses so that she was obvious to voices that called to her. "I don't expect you to let me in, but I want you to try to collect yourself, please?"

"Why bother?" Sasha muttered into the pillow, uncaring that Black Canary could not hear her. "There's nothing to collect," She turned around and sat up on her bed, wiping away the tears and she barred away her emotions for just a moment. "Why do you care?" Her voice betrayed her, cracking at the first syllable.

There was a long silence before the woman's voice came in a sad chuckle. "Honestly, I don't know why. Maybe it's my intuitive to be protective of you kids," She explained.

"Black Canary…"

"Call me Dinah,"

Sasha swallowed and nodded, even though Dinah couldn't see. "Dinah, I don't need protection, I don't need to be treated like a kid. I just…" Once again she had to bite back a series of sobs and she paused for a full two minutes. "Need to be alone," She finished and sniffled, wiping away the tears that continued to spill onto her cheeks.

"But you're not alone," Dinah assured her sympathetically. Sasha shook her head and laid back down on the bed. She didn't answer. She didn't need their sympathy, or their pity. She wanted to be alone. They couldn't help her now. Black Canary sighed at the silence that followed her declaration. "I understand you need time, Sasha, but if you want anyone to talk to…I'll be glad to listen," Then she left. Sasha didn't want to talk or to listen. She just wanted to forget that she forgot.

* * *

M'gann walked into the living room of her home, following shortly after Black Canary ran through the room after a distraught girl. Everyone except Rocket was there. They saw Sasha run through the lounge, hiding her face in her long, ebony-shaded hair. Hell, even Artemis and Robin shot questions after her that she ignored. When the Martian entered the room with a downcast face, they all cast her silent questions. Her mouth formed a hardline and she sat next to Conner on the couch, who wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her close.

"We went into her mind and there was nothing left of her memory," She told the others and curled next to Conner.

"Ah, man," Wally breathed and ran a hand through his hair. "That bites,"

"No wonder she ran out of here looking like…" Zatanna didn't finish her sentence and she bit her lip.

M'gann pursed her lips and sighed. "The thing is, he never looked forward. She didn't realize that something new was there,"

Artemis looked up from her place by Wally's side. "The last three days…" She breathed in realization. M'gann nodded. "But, it was only three days,"

"Not to her, and I don't think even she knows it," She said and grimaced.

Black Canary came back from the corridors, a frown on her face. Though, at the sight of her trainees, she managed a small smile. "Sasha just needs time alone. I advise you not to push her into anything, she'll come out on her own time," She explained earnestly. "Never the less, we have to continue our training as scheduled. First, I want to work with you, Zatanna, personally since you've been away for two months. Everyone else pair up, warm up, and start sparring," She instructed in a stern tone. Zatanna got up and nodded at her trainer before following her into the hangar, with the other trailing closely. It didn't take long for the team to pair up and begin their training.

* * *

**Mount Justice**

**July 21****st**** 7:13 PM EST**

Zatanna and Artemis stood outside Sasha's door, a plate of food in Zatanna's hands. The two were the only ones that Sasha would allow inside her room, so they were in charge of bringing her food and seeing if she was getting better. The two didn't mind it, they actually enjoyed getting to know Sasha, even in her state of turmoil. For the past three days she's been locked in her room, at first it was to sulk, but now she was recuperating. It wouldn't take long until she would come out of her shell.

Artemis knocked on the door and with a semi-cheery voice, called in, "Sasha, it's us, Zatanna and Artemis. We brought you dinner," The door slid open and allowed the two girls to enter. Sasha was on her bed, waving her hand though the flame of her favorite, red candle. As Zatanna and Artemis entered, she picked up the candle and placed it on her nightstand and gave the girls some room to sit on her twin-sized bed. She crossed her legs and took the plate from Zatanna, offering her a 'thanks' and a weary smile.

"No problem," Zatanna answered and sat down at the edge of the bed. "How are you?"

"Honstely," Sasha began between mouthfuls of warm food. She swallowed before continuing. "I'm doing better. I just need to think things out. I know I must seem pretty pathetic-"

"You're not!" Artemis interrupted. "If I were in your shoes…I'd probably have a mental break down. Believe it or not, you're pretty strong,"

The broken girl scoffed, showing a half-smile. "Thanks. I am getting a little cabin fever, but I need to think of what I'm going to do now," She sighed. "Has Bats come back with any news on my case? You know, like if I might have family out there or something?"

Zatanna thought for a moment for answering with a shake of her head, "No, I don't think so. Sorry," She said sheepishly. "It's a slow investigation since there's other stuff to worry about like world domination conspiracies, stuff like that,"

"I understand. How is everyone? Any new missions lately?" She asked. Both older girls were surprised at how eager Sasha was to know about the outside world. She was progressing and that was good. Artemis smiled at her curiosity.

The two girls told Sasha about the recent missions in the last three days. She laughed when they told her about Gar getting tangled up in Zatanna's spell rope by accident when they were fighting Gorilla Gorilla. She was also glad to hear about everyone doing okay and hoping that she'd get better soon. Sasha's thoughts drifted to their worries for her. She's only known them for three days. Why are they so worried about her? Why do these two girls go out of their way to help her? _Because they're just those kinds of people. _

Sasha huffed mentally. "Tell them I'll be okay, you guys don't need to worry about me," She said with a smile. Amber eyes found their way to a large stack of books across the room. Two days ago Zatanna had brought her a bunch of books to study for her powers and a bunch of other informative books to entertain her, she finished almost every single one of them. She also managed to draw about fifteen pages worth of drawings.

Artemis suddenly got a text and pulled out her phone. The contact was her mother. The archer groaned as she read the text and stood up. "Sorry, I gotta go. Mom wants me to have dinner with her tonight instead of trying to sneak in something other than Vietnamese food,"

Sasha's head perked up in interest. She remembered reading about the many spices in Thai and Vietnamese food in a stray cook book that she found. "Is Vietnamese any good?" The girl asked, her eagerness not hidden well. Artemis spotted her sudden interest and chuckled.

"Yeah, it's good. After a little while of having it every day of your life, you kinda get tired of it. Maybe one day I'll have you over for dinner," The blonde offered with a smile.

Sasha nodded. "That'd be awesome, Artemis,"

"Anyways, I gotta go," She waved at the two remaining girls. "See ya, Zatanna. See ya, Sash." With that she left the room, leaving Sasha and Zatanna together. Unlike the archer, Zatanna didn't have to worry much about getting home on time, considering that the Cave was her home. Though, she couldn't deny that she was getting tired. Her blue-grey eyes strayed from Sasha, to the piles of drawings on her bed and scattered across the floor, and finally on the stack of books across the room.

"Did you read any of the books I gave you?" She asked, curious as to if Sasha did her homework. Zatanna took it upon herself to help the girl train her elemental side, even if she didn't know much about it herself.

"Most of them," Sasha said as though it was a bad thing. Though, in all honesty, the magician didn't even expect the girl to finish two. She had a good eight books in that stack.

"Most of them? That's good!" She encouraged with a smile. Sasha accepted that encouragement and chuckled.

"Thank you for helping me, I owe you and Artemis a lot," She said with a yawn. That was her cue.

Zatanna stood up and took the plate. "Yeah, you do, but I'm sure we'll find a way to settle your debts," She teased and started for the door. "Night!" The brunette threw over her shoulder before exiting the room, leaving Sasha alone. She took the candle in her hands and set in front of her on the bed. She gathered the flame in her hand and let it float over her palm before it expanded. On her mental will, the fire flowed onto the ground, not allowing the stone floor to become ablaze in flames, and materialized into a flickering fox. The fox played around on the floor as the runes on Sasha's body glowed the fiery colors of amber/gold and red.

A new small symbol was added to the few on her hand that created an intricate pattern. She guessed creativity could earn her something. **

* * *

**Mount Justice**

**July 22nd 1:31 PM EST**

Artemis swooped her leg upwards at Robin, who managed to duck at the last second and grapple her. The two, along with the rest of the team, had been training for the since one o'clock, working diligently to Black Canary's instruction. For just a second, Robin had almost managed to get Artemis to the ground, but the archer wouldn't allow it as she swerved around him, grabbing his arm and twisting it back behind him. It was an old move, but still affective. She kicked the back of his knees to knock him down. The attack would have worked had Robin not maneuvered his body to roll a distance away as he hit the ground and got back up before a hologram could show up, claiming he'd fail.

Across the room, Conner threw a punch at Kaldur, which he effectively blocked. It felt like blocking lead, but he pressed on anyway. The Atlantean grabbed the clone's arm and ducked to sweep his leg under him, aiming to toss Conner over him and onto his back. Though, Conner knew better, thanks to hard training, and jumped over Kaldur's leg. Elsewhere, Zatann was paired up with Rocket and M'gann was against her brother. Wally, however was nowhere to be seen. Apparently, he was late for training.

Dinah Lance observed each of their movements with sharp eyes, making note of each of their mistakes and their feats. She walked about the room, sizing up each of her trainees as they fought their opponents. Over the year and a half, the team was giving constant, excellent feedback from their training, and this session didn't cease to prove it. She knew that one day, they'd all make excellent Leaguers.

"Black- Dinah?" A voice murmured over to the woman. She looked over to meet the amber gaze of Sasha. She didn't even notice or hear the girl approach, yet here she was, right next to her. This was the first time she's been out of her room in four days. Black Canary smiled and turned to face her. The pale-skinned girl smiled brightly. "I'd like to take up your offer on those sessions. Also…"

"Yes?"

Sasha reflected a serious expression and looked Dinah straight in the eye. It was that same fiery determination that she saw in her the first time they met. "I want training with the Team," The blonde's eyes widened in this sudden proclamation. Though, Sasha still held her tone as she continued. "I don't expect to be part of the Team, I'm not even sure if I want to be part of it, but I need something to do with my life, don't I?" In all her seriousness, a snarky half-smile began to sneak onto her expression, as though she were looking for a challenge.

Black Canary chuckled and nodded. "Okay, and for your first test, there's a certain speedster that needs some lesson learning," She informed. Sasha's smile grew.

"I can be a pretty good teacher," She snickered playfully. The woman smiled and lean down to whisper in the short girl's ear what she had in mind.

It didn't take long for Wallace to get to the Cave. _"Recognized: Kid Flash – B03."_ The feminine, monotone voice announced as the ginger appeared through the tube with a yellow flash. Everything seemed normal. The team was training, Black Canary was leaning on the wall across the room from him, staring at him with a steely gaze. She looked pissed.

With an awkward smile, the speedster tried to come up with an excuse for his tardy. "Umm, well, you see I was attacked-" Before he could finish, a hand grabbed his own and another reached over his arm and grabbed his face. Dinah's glare suddenly lightened into a smirk.

"No excuses!" Wally didn't know what was going on, and then someone kicked his legs out from under him and flipped him back. The boy was suddenly propped up by his upper back, his legs bent over his body and touching the ground close to his face. Through his legs, he looked up and stared at a certain Russian, who stood infront of him with her arms crossed, a wide smile displayed on her face.

"Russian?" He questioned, making her smile grown even wider as if to say, "The one and only."

"I guess that'll teach you not to come in late, right, West?" She chided with a sneer. Wally just groaned and rolled his eyes. Sasha chuckled and looked up to the approaching Black Canary. "How'd I do?"

"Perfect," She praised and Sasha beamed. Black Canary's gaze moved over to Wally. "So, what was your mistake?"

"Underestimating the skills of a tiny, ninja Russian?" The teen offered with a toothy grin. Both girls shook their heads.

Sasha was the one to correct him. "Thanks for the compliment, but no. Never lie to Black Canary," She said with a smirk and added in sing-song. "By the way, you're my sparring partner today, so hurry up and get ready, I don't have all day," The girl left with Black Canary to go over any moves she didn't already have imbedded into her instincts, leaving Wally to try to figure out how to shift his weight so he could get up.

Meanwhile, Robin's body crashed on the platform floor, not getting up fast enough to beat the classification next to him. FAIL. He sighed and looked up at Artemis who offered him a hand and a smile. "Don't look so pouty, you're still leading 22-16 since the beginning of the year," She chuckled. Robin smiled and took her hand as she helped him up.

"True, true," He said and looked over at the Zeta-Beam tubes. He heard Wally come in, but didn't really notice anything due to how focused he was with sparring Artemis. Though, now he was curious as to what happened. Wally was on the ground, his rear in the air and his legs in front of his face. Just a little ways away, Black Canary and Sasha were walking together to another, empty area of the room and they began to go over different moves. "What do you think happened?" He asked Artemis.

She shrugged. "Lesson learning, maybe."

* * *

_***- Sasha's emotions generally ware off on the flames she is around. This can also be displayed when she's fighting, being an emotional fighter.**_

_****- This is a new skill earned by Sasha in her time of solitude. Due to having to find her own entertainment, her creativity lead her to develop materialization with her flames.**_

**Replies:**

**Guest1:** Ha. Ya' think? In my opinion it was a bit cliche...but sometimes we need the classics. Thanks for taking the time to review!

**Guest2:** Yay! I like the word awesome...I think I should come up with a new word though. Hmmm...I have a new goal in life. Thanks for the review!

**-REVIEW!**


	6. Chapter Five

**From the Ashes**

**Author's Note: **Hello! I don't have much to say in this little note today other than the usual, so here I go! I love you all like crispy bacon, I really do hope you know that! So, review! Let's try and get...five reviews for chapter five? I might update early! Yay! Also, feel free to favorite and follow if you love the story. Or just do it for the hell of it because apparently that's how the world goes round...

WAIT! I do have something to say! I may have made a bit of a boo-boo…When I did my research on Sasha's name (yes, I did research, because I like names that mean something ideal to my characters and match their ethnicity), I mistook the name "Aleksandra" for "Alexandra" and yeah. So, for my readers that know her as Alexandra, I will be correcting Sasha's name in the existing chapters. For my readers that have no idea about what I'm talking about, then awesome! Continue reading! Thank you!

**Disclaimer: **I do **NOT** own **Young Justice**, **DC **or any other reference I make in **From the Ashes**. I just own the plot and my OCs.

**Chapter Five**

_"The flame and a wild animal have two things in common: They can neither be contained nor truely broken,"_

**Mount Justice**

**July 23rd 4:25 PM EST**

"I'm glad you decided to talk, Sasha," Black Canary said and sat down on in a green chair, she folded her right leg over her leg. Sasha sat in the chair in front of her own, her legs crisscrossed and her hands in her lap. After training that day, the two went to a private room so they could talk. The session started out very silent, until Dinah decided to ask questions. "I'm sure you don't want me to ask you how you feel, since-"

"That's the generic question one would ask in this situation," Sasha finished for her with a nod. "Yeah, the only thing I wanna talk about is," She paused. "I don't want to always chase my past." The blonde's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "I'd like to know about my past, but obviously my chances of finding anyone or anything from my past are very slim. My memory's been wiped for a reason, and I've realized that in a way, I'm sort of scared of knowing my past,"

Black Canary listened on, surprised at this confession. Sasha's lips formed a sad frown. "I don't know what I was before. If Batman's right, I could've been an assassin with the intent to kill all of those opposing the League of Shadows. I could've killed several people in my past, and I don't want to know that. I don't want to be an assassin. I don't want to kill." She said, determined not only to drill it into Dinah's mind, but her own as well. Sasha was everything but a murderer. "I don't want you guys knowing that either. I don't want the others to think of me as a danger. I-I know it's only been a few days, well, nearly a week now, but they're the closest things I have to family and friends right now," She didn't have to clarify who 'they' were.

"They might not think of you any different than what they do now. For all you know, what you were before could be something entirely different from who you are now," Dinah assured her with an earnest smile.

Sasha bit her lip. "But what if the person who I was before came back with my memories? I don't want to hurt you, any of you, not after what how you've treated me," She said and sighed, bringing her knees to her chest now and resting her head on her knees. "I've also realized that this gives me another chance. For all I know, I could've been the biggest baddie out there, and now I can become something better. Make a new life. Not a lot of people get that chance,"

Dinah's smile grew wider at the hint of a small grin from the ebony-haired girl. Amber eyes looked up, fire flaring in those orbs. "So you're saying you want to help people?"

With a devilish grin and determination in her tone, Sasha answered with a firm nod. "You guys taught me to help people, so you might as well make a career out of it."

* * *

**Wayne Manner - Batcave**

**July 30th 7:24 PM EST**

Dick walked into the Batcave, his uniform on and mask in hand. Blue orbs swept the cave. It was still a sight to see even if he was there every night. Bruce was at the large computer, typing away at the keys with a large stack of newspapers from nearly nine years ago next to him. He was in his uniform as well, with the exception of his cowl that was thrown messily on the control board of the computer. The unmasked vigilante looked concentrated on what he was reading. The two were getting ready to go on patrol, per usual of the two, though after a few years…it could get admittedly boring. Seeing the same city over and over again in its ruins. Of course, Gotham's gotten better, much better, ever since Bruce started fighting for it. Even better since Dick became Robin. Though, he knew it couldn't go on like this. One day, Dick would move on from being Batman's partner and go solo, if not become Batman…

The thought was unsettling and to avoid any unwanted thoughts, the boy walked behind Bruce and looked at the files on the large screen. It was a picture of a girl, looked to be like a shot from a newspaper. The girl was young, maybe seven or eight, her hair was long, looking to be dark in the black and white picture, and she was wearing what looked like to be some sort of ball gown, an a stick-mask in her tiny hands. She must've been at some sort of masquerade, maybe something for charity. Next to the picture was a column that read:

"**SCATTER CORP HEIRESS UNMASKED!**

**At Rosalie Himura's charity masquerade, the heiress to Scatter Corp, an industry originating from Japan and growing westward, specializing in technology, weaponry, and defense, is unmasked. Information on Aleksandra 'Sasha' Volkov has been unknown until the event. Himura claims that her daughter was sheltered to be taught in the ways of business before being brought into the light. Sasha Volkov was revealed after running into a reporter and dropping her hand mask. When the reporter asked the little girl who her parents were, she refused to tell, claiming, 'Mommy doesn't know.' It was later confirmed by Rosalie Himura that she was not allowed at the ball, but the small girl went on her own to 'see the world for the first time,' as the heiress claims…"**

The article went on and on about the rumors and questioning why the owner of Scatter would hide her child. Dick's eyes widened at this. How could they miss this? Scatter Corp was a new industry to America, only allowed to sell their technology in the U.S. The first store and building to be established in America was in New York City, New York after Rosalie Himura moved there looking for more business. It was a small and young corporation, but it had some of the best technology to offer thanks to its Japanese origins. The discovery of Sasha at age seven was the first and only sighting of her, and afterwards, Himura had requested that all the reports be taken down and the girl went off the grid again. Talk about paranoid parents.

"So, we found out who she is?" Dick murmured, crossing his arms. This was a new change. Rosalie Himura was always trying to keep her personal life secret, so it could be that Sasha's missing files could be due to her overprotectiveness rather than being an agent for the Shadows. That still didn't explain her intuitive to fight.

Bruce's response was a curt grunt before he actually spoke, "Yup. The question is, if Scatter Corp heiress was kidnapped, wouldn't she be reported?"

"Hmmm," Dick hummed and drummed his fingers on his thigh. "I would think so, and wouldn't they want a ransom? Maybe the Shadows used her as a hostage to get in weaponry and tech from Scatter, since that's their merchandise." He looked at the Scatter logo that Bruce pulled up. It was a fading rose, and the white petals blended off into the word "Scatter" in delicate cursive. You'd think a company with such a pretty logo would be a fashion industry rather than one that specializes in advanced technology and high-developed weapons. "Maybe we should ask Ms. Himura what she's been pulling under the table."

"You think she'd actually tell us? She's a known supporter of Gordon Godfrey," Bruce said.

"Ask Talia?" Dick suggested with a lopsided grin. Bruce shot his protégé a narrow eyed Bat glare before he pulled on his cowl and lightly hit the boy upside the head, hard enough to make him say in a chuckling way, "Ow…"

"Let's go," Came Batman's sharp tone.

"Coming~" The Boy Wonder said sing-song and put on his mask.

* * *

**Mount Justice**

**July 31st 4:30 PM EST**

Sasha's small and stocky body hit the ground with powerful force. Her breath hitched and she had to force herself not to let any of her breath to leave her. A computer hologram showed up above her, declaring she failed, before disappearing and leaving Black Canary in its image.

"Good, but your movements are a bit choppy," Black Canary informed Sasha as she helped her up from the floor. "It may work for kick boxing, but martial arts can be a bit more fluent. Try practicing your steps and maneuvering your body. It's not always about the attacks, but also evasion and your swiftness."

Sasha dusted off her jeans and rolled her shoulders back. "Got it," She grumbled and rubbed her back. "Ow…" The girl mouthed as she walked away from the clearing. Next in line was Gar who chuckled at the beating Sasha took. She didn't mind it. She laughed too when others were beat down by Dinah Lance. The woman was arguably the best fighter on the League and Sasha made it her goal to live up to her standards.

The Team watched closely at the sparring match between student and teacher, though Sasha couldn't help herself but glance over at Robin. He hasn't talked to her the whole day. It felt like he was avoiding her, really. If only she could find out why…In all honesty, the boy made Sasha curious. Both him and his mentor were a mystery and it spiked her curiosity to its highest point. She just had to know what was going on in their heads. It was like a challenge to her, one that she has willingly accepted.

"You know, Sasha," Kaldur murmured over to her from the side, dragging her out of her thoughts. She turned her head to look him in the eye, giving him the silent OK to continue. "I was thinking about asking Batman if you would be allowed to join the Team," Her heart sunk at those words. Was he really considering asking her to join the Team? She couldn't help the small smile that stretched on her face, slowly getting wider. "Though, it is up to you in the end,"

With a wide smile, Sasha opened her mouth to respond. She was interrupted by her inner thoughts. She couldn't afford to get any more close to them. There was still a strong chance she could end up being trained to be an assassin, maybe even have killed one of their friends. Sasha couldn't risk the drama and the torment. "S-Sorry, but I don't think that will be necessary. I'm only sticking around because of your resources. Once I find out where I belong or if I don't belong anywhere, I'm long gone." She said a bit heartlessly, and managed to flash a forced smirk.

Sasha caught the wide-eyed stares from the rest of the Team. Even Robin shot her a look she couldn't quite register due to his damned sunglasses. Ever since her talk with Black Canary, she's been giving the impression that she's just around for information…nothing more, nothing less. Even though Dinah insisted it wasn't a good way to go, but she still agreed not to tell the others of Sasha's true intentions.

_"Recognized: Batman – 02."_

Sasha looked up at the Zeta-Beam tube that flashed yellow before revealing the Batman in his usual aura of authority and…scariness. Speak of the Devil and he shall appear…She couldn't help but bristle in defense as he walked forward. The fighting between Black Canary and Beast Boy came to a slight pause as Gar stopped in his tracks to look for himself who was here. This gave Dinah the advantage and she swept him off his feet and onto the ground. The fallen boy grimaced in pain and looked up at the woman who offered a hand. "Your enemy will never allow you a moment to look away from the fight," She informed sternly, though she held a small smile.

After helping M'gann's brother up, she turned to the Caped Crusader who waited patiently for her attention. "Yes?" She said with an arched brow, her arms folded over her chest.

"I would like to speak to you, Kaldur, Robin, and Sasha. Alone." Batman said, eyeing the teens. Sasha looked over at Robin, who, unlike herself and Kaldur, didn't look too unsure about things. Of course he would know what's going on. He is Batman's protégé…

The rest of the Team got the hint and began walking out of the hangar, leaving those allowed to stay. With nothing said, Batman went over to the center of the hangar and pulled up the holographic computer. The image of Sasha and an article of the _Gotham Gazette_ from about nine years ago appear on the screen. The article says something about some…spoiled heiress to a company named Scatter Corp being 'unmasked' at a masquerade. The picture on the article is of a baby-faced, seven-year-old girl with long, presumably dark hair, a ball gown, and a hand-held mask. Sasha was curious now and she began comparing the two pictures. The girls were scarily similar.

"What's this about?" Black Canary asked, her eyes narrowed as she read the article. Her eyes suddenly widened with shock. "You're kidding me, right?" Sasha quickly scanned the article and the words that popped out to her were 'Aleksandra "Sasha" Volkov,' 'Rosalie Himura,' and 'daughter.' Sasha's jaw dropped. It was that easy? Why hadn't they found this before?

"Heiress to Scatter Corp?" Kaldur questioned, looking at her as though she would actually know the answer to his unspoken questions. The girl just shrugged and looked at Robin. She suddenly came to a furious realization. He knew this whole time. That was why he was avoiding her. She bristled with anger and tried to hold back her temper.

Robin seemed to catch on with her burning air as her runes began to flare up. He eyed her and took a step back. Sasha, with her jaw clenched, shook her head and let out a ragged breath. The bastard. Narrowed amber eyes turn to Batman, faltering just a bit from his own Bat glare. The girl huffed and bit her lip. "So…I was a snotty nosed brat that was sheltered from the world? Awesome. Glad to know I lost my memory," She said bluntly with a roll of her eyes. The others shot her disapproving looks. She shrugged. "What? I'm just being a realist here, I don't want to be the way this article describes me."

"Would you rather be an assassin?" Batman growled her way. She took a while to respond, but, as usual, came up with something smart.

"As long as I'm not one of those damned materialistic zombies, I'm quite fine, actually," She said with a sneer. "Anyway, so now what? I go home to my over protective mother, or I can stay here and act like I never saw this?"

"You mean you don't want to go home?" Robin asked in disbelief. Sasha turned to him with a sassy look and her hands on her hips.

"Not if I have to let her keep me in a box in her basement,"

"She's your mother!"

"Really? I don't remember her being there when I woke up,"

"Robin. Sasha. That is enough," Kaldur says sternly over to them, causing their argument to cease. The two shot each other death glares before turning their attention to their elders. Black Canary and Batman eyed the youngsters before continuing, having to make sure either teen didn't burst out in argument against the other again.

"You will have to go home, Sasha," Batman told her, and she groaned in reply. "However, we will need to question your mother,"

"Okay…" Sasha muttered and crossed her arms. "So, when will I be going home?"

"Tomorrow."

With a huff, Sasha rolled her eyes, a frown on her face. "Yippee,"

* * *

**Gotham**

**August 1st 1:00 PM EST**

Sasha sat uncomfortably in the luxury car assigned to her. She expected to arrive at her house in the Batmobile, but nope. She was in the back of a luxury car, with a complete stranger driving her, a couple of cop cars to the side and the Batmobile up ahead of them. The girl was fuming. Why did she have to isolated like this? Batman made a serious mistake when he contacted Rosalie Himura.

_(Flashback)_

_Sasha stared at the phone icon as it shook around in a signal to call. Her body was burning hot in anger. Of all people, her mother had to be an overprotective control freak. Finally, her mother answered. The image of a very good-looking, middle-aged woman appeared on the screen. She was Asian, obviously, with her long black hair and olive-taned skin. The woman's complexion was perfect, courtesy of the concealer she was wearing, and she wore a very slim looking, strapless, black dress. Her brown eyes narrowed the moment she saw the masked vigilantes. _

"_What is it?" She asked sharply. Sasha suddenly knew where her bite came from. She rubbed her eyes, they were irritating from the brown color contacts she was wearing. Batman said it would be easier to explain whys he was wearing contacts rather than explaining why her eyes were suddenly the shade of gold. _

"_Ms. Himura, we contact you in question of your daughter," Black Canary said calmly. Rosalie arched a brow, her lips parted in surprise. _

"_You mean the girl who ran away with her father and brother when she was about ten years old?" The woman questioned with interest. Sasha's interests perked at the mention of a brother and father. Well, good to know that her past self had a little sense about not being sheltered. "What about her?" _

_That was her cue. Sasha stepped up to appear on the screen and looked up at her mother. She fidgeted in her spot and huffed. "She's right here," Sasha said, her voice breaking a little. Why was she so damn nervous? Rosalie's eyes widened with disbelief and she smiled. _

"_Aleksandra?" She breathed. Sasha nodded. "Oh my…it's been almost six years since I've seen you. You've…grown. Quite a lot, actually," Her eyes narrowed and she turned to Batman and Black Canary. "Why is she with you?" _

"_I would actually like to speak with you personally about that, Rosalie," Batman growled. Rosalie thought for a while before sighing. _

"_Arrangements will be made. I want her back tomorrow," and without another word, the call ended._

_(End Flashback)_

Those said arrangements were that she would have no contact with the heroes once she arrived in the closest airport. Sasha was to be escorted to the cars, that were guarded by both the Batmobile and two other cop cars, and from there they would drive to the southern outskirts of Gotham where the Himura estates were. The modernized household was held on a large piece of land. Sasha wasn't surprised to see the many guards at the metal gate at the front of the sixty-five acre household as they drove there.

Batman noted that Rosalie's location raised more suspicion on Sasha, Rosalie, and Scatter Corp' account. Sasha's unaccounted for disappearance could indicate that something was up underneath the table at Scatter Corp, unless it was true that Sasha ran away with the other half of her family. Sasha really didn't know what to believe. She would speak up when she needed too.

"Sasha?" A voice came in through the comm. device in her ear. It was Robin.

"Don't talk to me, I'm mad at you," She hissed into the mini microphone connected to the popped collar of her leather jacket. Sasha was still mad about Robin not telling her anything about what was going on the day before.

She heard Robin sigh through the device. "You really know how to hold a grudge, huh?" He asked, a small chuckle behind his voice.

"You should have told me right away. I had every right to know as soon as possible." Sasha growled lowly, trying not to be heard by the driver up front. She had to keep this contact secret, otherwise her mother would probably snap.

"It wasn't my place to tell!"

Sasha didn't respond to the Boy Wonder. Instead, she talked to Batman. "Bats, what's going on? Something's going down with you and Rosalie, and I want to know what," She said sternly, referring to her own mother with her first name. She didn't feel like Rosalie Himura had earned the title of 'mom' just yet.

"I'm going to have to talk to her about the relations at Scatter Corp and about your disappearance six years ago." He replied curtly. "Take off the comm., we're getting ready to stop."

Sasha rolled her eyes and sighed. "Yeah, whatever," She grumbled and tore off her ear piece and the microphone before shoving it into her pocket, making sure it was concealed and not noticeable. She looked out the darkened windows, able to see a very modernized, large house up on a hill. The house was in the many uneven shapes of rectangles and squares, with flat roves and about two balconies on one of the three floors. In front was a large Zen garden and a still-water pool with a bridge over it that lead to the entrance. Rosalie had good taste. At least in Sasha's opinion.

The car stopped in the curved drive way and the back door opened to allow Sasha an exit. Slowly she got out and covered her face with sunglasses as instructed. With two buff men at her side, she was escorted to the door. From the corner of her eye and through the reflection of her polarized sunglasses, she could see Batman and Robin following closely behind them. The frosted glass double doors opened to the main room of the house. The main room had a small indoor fountain, off to the side was a setting of living room furniture with a lone fireplace in the center, and near the back of the room was a large, white, gradually spiraling staircase held up by silver poles from the bottom of the steps.

"Miss Himura, your guests, Aleksandra Volkov, Batman, and Robin, have arrived." Said a very fluent, electronic, feminine voice.

"Thank you, Eve," Another voice came in, this one a little more smooth and flowing. Following the voice was none other than Rosalie Himura herself. Dressed in a white, snug dress that flared out in white feathers down her left thigh and high, three-inch high-heels that laced up her legs like ballet shoes, she looked rather wealthy. Her frame was beautiful as well as her face, dark eyes, hair, and olive tanned skin made her white dress clothing pop. Infront of her was a crystal-clear holographic computer that moved with her and shut off at she caught a glimpse of her daughter and the two vigilantes. Sharp eyes behind black framed glasses narrowed at Batman before moving to her daughter. A small, very small, smile slowly crept on her face.

"Aleksandra…" She breathed the name causing Sasha to uncomfortably shift in her spot between the guards. Rosalie's eyes turned to the men with a scowl. "Don't you two have anything better to do?" She asked bitterly and the two got the hint and left. She rolled her eyes. "I hate men, but I'll keep them around if it means to protect my daughter."

Hates men? Sasha scoffed inwardly.

"Rosalie?" Batman growled, his eyes narrowed. She threw him a glare in response.

"Yes?" The woman hissed, her voice cold. Sasha nearly flinched. It was scary how familiar this situation was.

"Can I talk to you in private, please?" He asked with just about as much bitterness as her.

Rosalie looked over at Sasha, then at Robin, then finally back at Batman. She rolled her eyes and pulled up the techy holocomupter again. Responding to her hand movements, the device responded to her silent commands and a sudden appearance of a holographic female, robot-like thing appeared in front of Sasha. She jumped. "Fine, but I don't want your sidekick," The word dripped with venom. "near my daughter."

Rosalie turned to Sasha and she smiled bitterly. "Aleksandra, your room is where is always have been, upstairs, first room to the right. Welcome home, dear," She said, a little to enthusiastically and kissed the top of her forehead.

Sasha grumbled and wiped off the red lipstick on her forehead as she walked upstairs. Gross. She follow the instructions to her room and when she approached, a voice echoed around her. The same voice of the AI, Eve, that Rosalie was talking to. "Miss Rosalie has instructed me to ready your shower. What temperature setting would you like the water on?"

"The hottest you can get it, Eve. Thank you," Sasha said and quickly entered her room. The first thing she did was leap into her bed, grasp her pillow, and scream viciously into it. Afterward, like nothing had happened, she sat up and looked around.

The room was large with a single, king-sized, black platform bed with a leather backboard with diamond-style buttons, the comforter was a very soft, plump, white cover and near the foot of the bed was a silk, black over cover. At the foot of the bed was a white love seat decorated with black pillows. The floor was wood panels of some sort of dark color with the occasional black, fuzzy carpet. To each side of the bed was a black nightstand with candles acting as lamps and one single alarm clock on one table and on the other, a Scatter Corp laptop. From the ceiling in front of her bed traveled two beams parallel to each other, between those slender beams was a holographic TV, slightly transparent to show the large, sleek, black dresser behind it.

"This place needs color…" She muttered absently and took note to buy something with bright colors. Sasha stood up off her bed and looked for any doors that looked like they might lead to a bathroom. There was a set of fog glass doors with intricate designs traced into it and another set of black sliding doors, there was another set of doors but she could tell, even from behind the black curtains, that it led to one of the balconies. She figured the sliding doors lead to a large closet of some sort while the fog glass doors lead to the bathroom.

The opened the bathroom and once again she was impressed by the large amount of modernism and techy in the room. The floors and walls were black tile with the occasional grey stone steps that lead to the glass vanities and sinks, the Jacuzzi bathtub mounted into the floor, and the standup shower that was already running with steaming hot water. Sasha sighed and undressed before stepping into the shower, questioning why the doors were crystal clear glass. The hot water didn't hurt her, in fact it felt great. Though, the water itself made her feel a bit light-headed. This happened all the time when she took a shower. She didn't want to know what it felt like to be completely submerged in water.

After soaking herself in the fancy oils, shampoos, conditioners, and body washes, the water shut off at a voice command and she stepped out of the shower. Surprisingly there was a new set of clothes on the vanity and her old ones were never to be seen. Sasha growled and took note to ask for her dress coat later on. The clothes were a bit fancier than she would want. They were dark skinny jeans, designer mind you, a black undershirt and a long, soft, red tank. She pulled on the clothes and walked out the door, shutting off the light behind her. When she came out of her bathroom, she didn't expect the Boy Wonder to be sitting on the couch at the foot of her bed.

Much to her disliking, Sasha yipped in surprise, resulting in her face to grow bright red. She could feel the heat off her cheeks begin to simmer down as she fumed. "Damn it, Bird Brain, what are you doing in here?" She hissed, her eyes narrowed.

"Breaking rules. Gotta problem?" He asked smugly and leaned back into the couch, crossing his legs.

Sasha sneered at him. "Just a bit. How'd you get in here without sending Rosalie's security system into haywire?"

Robin shrugged. "Let's just say that Scatter Corp technology may be very pretty and flashy, but it's not all that secure," He said simply. Sasha rolled her eyes and he grinned at her. "Still hate me?"

For a moment, the girl looked a little confused before leering at him. "No! I don't _hate_ you,"

"Then you forgive me!"

"No, I-"

"So which is it? Hate or love?"

"You're balancing on a _very_ fine line, Bird Brain,"

"Don't worry. World class acrobat, remember?"

"You're infuriating!"

"Infatuating?"

The flames from the candles on the nightstands quickly found their way to her hands and she slashed the fire at him, though she was careful to not let him get burned. Quickly, Sasha turned and crossed her arms. "Feel lucky the flames missed you," She growled. For once, her wit was completely lacking. It could be because she was mad with the bird to begin with or the fact that she was near the brink of burning the house down.

"Oh, I do feel very lucky. Thank you for sparing me, Miss Aleksandra," Robin said sarcastically and did a sloppy mock-bow.

"Don't call me that, weirdo," Sasha muttered darkly and, folding her arms, plopped down on her bed. "Get out of my room before me or my mother burns you to a crisp," Her tattoos flared in an intimidating fashion.

Robin shook his head and stuck his tongue out. "Nope!" He popped the 'p.' "Besides, I don't think your mother is a fire elemental like you," Sasha arched a brow. Now he had her attention and curiosity.

"Oh, really? Why's that?" She asked, and despite her thick curiosity, she still a managed to talk like she was bored.

"The eyes, most of the stuff in this house isn't fire retardant, there are dozens of sprinklers around the house, et cetera," He listed blandly. Blinking, he sat up and looked towards the door. "We should get back,"

Sasha gave him a dull look. "Don't you mean, you should get back? I think I'm kind of grounded from leaving my room," There was a tug on her wrist and suddenly she was out the door with Robin pulling her towards the stair case.

"Just act like I've been there this whole time and you just got out," He instructed and left her in the upstairs lounge that over looked the first floor main room. Robin hurried to his former place in the main room. Sasha leaned on the rails of the lounge and looked down as Batman and Rosalie reentered the room, both baring scowls. Batman took his place beside his partner.

"I hope this questioning of my affiliates and my daughter doesn't become a habit, Batman. I assure you, Scatter Corp has nothing to do with Aleksandra's runaway with her father. When she did so, I saw fit not to meddle in it until she returned. I do not know why she ended up in a dangerous place like she did, nor do I really care as long as her father is dead and my daughter is safe." The woman said with a bite to her tone. Sasha's lips curled ever so slightly into a small snicker. "Now, if you don't mind, please leave. I'm a very busy woman,"

"We'll keep in touch," Batman growled before leaving. Rosalie scoffed and rolled her eyes, much like Sasha usually did.

"Like hell we will," She muttered once the Dynamic Duo was gone. Rosalie's sharp eyes turned up to Sasha and she smiled. "Aleksandra, sweetie? Why don't you come on down, I wish to speak with you. It has been six years, right?"

Nodding curtly, Sasha stepped down to meet her mother at the base of the steps. Once she was down there, Rosalie gave her a very awkward hug that Sasha attempted to return normally. "Six years! Can you believe it, Aleksandra? I'm guessing your barbarian of a father took you to Russia? Ha! No wonder Batman found you in the horrific place! I'm guessing Lev put you into training just like he did Andrii, huh?" Rosalie babbled, as if Sasha knew what she was talking about.

Sasha nodded in response. "Yeah, something like that," She said, trying not to sound too clueless. "By the way, what all did Batman tell you?" Rosalie shot her a curious and concerned glance, as if to say, "Why do you care?"

"He just babbled on about finding you in some place over the Caribbean with a bunch of thugs, and for some reason they couldn't find your files to return you to me. He also told me that you know how to fight now, hmm?" She shot her daughter a questioning look and Sasha had to force herself to nod in response. So, Bats decided to keep her affinity for fire and her amnesia a secret. Way to let her into the plan. Though, something began to spike her interests. The offer that Kaldur made never left her mind.

"Oh, well about that…" Sasha fumbled with her words. "I…I want to become…like them…" She really didn't know any way to put it. Though, she visibly flinched when Rosalie's face twisted with fury.

"You mean be a hero?" She questioned, her thin brow arched and she was giving her daughter a scary glare.

"Y-Yes."

"No! Aleksandra, I don't want to hear talk of that in my house again. You understand?" Rosalie's voice was sharp and dark, upholding a rather far greater than the average angered mother. Though, Sasha wasn't submitting. In fact, she was angered by the response.

"What?! Why not?" She asked, her eyes narrowed. The girl stopped in her tracks and she was forced to have to look her mother in the eye.

"Please, don't tell me you actually believe in the shit they pull?" Rosalie questioned with a cold smile. "Besides, why should you help the world if they aren't going to give you anything back?"

Now Sasha was pissed. "I dunno, maybe because it's a good deed? You know, not everyone is selfish and self-absorbed like you, _mom_," She said the word mockingly with a scowl, not even thinking about the consequences of the verbal attack. Rosalie's eyes widened in shock.

"This is the _exact_ same behavior you possessed when you left. I don't want to hear it anymore,"

Sasha didn't care about over stepping her bounds with her mother rather than what she was with Batman. "Oh, I'm sorry, _mom_!" She barked sarcastically. "I'm terribly sorry for speaking my mind,"

"Aleksandra, drop it."

"No! I will not 'drop it!'"

"Aleksandra Volkov! I will not let you talk to me like that so long as you live under this roof. Drop it. I will not hear of this again, understand?!" Rosalie's volume was to its highest, but Sasha didn't flinch. Her temper flared, and the candles lit near them began to flare violently. Sasha huffed in response and folded her arms, looking the other way. She wouldn't answer. Rosalie's expression turned tired. "Aleksandra, I'm sorry, but…I just don't want you to get hurt,"

Sasha's gaze flicked her at her. _Is that why you kept me locked away from the world like a prisoner?_

"You're still oblivious to the dangers of the world, and I don't want to lose my daughter. Promise me you won't ever attempt such a rash action again?" Rosalie asked, her voice soft and gentle. Sasha looked at her and sighed, unfolding her arms. Still, she would not answer, though Rosalie figured it was a sign of admission. "Thank you, sweetie. I love you, you know that?" Sasha grumbled something under her breath as Rosalie pulled her into a light hug. The two parted and the mother held her daughter by the soldiers. "Now, guess what we'll be having for dinner? Your favorite! Dan dan noodles! Honestly, I don't know how you can eat that! It's just so spicy, but I suppose I can live with it tonight!"

Rosalie babbled on as she pulled her daughter away from the room they were in and into a, surprise! Modern kitchen and dining room. The two ate together and the dan dan noodles were really spicy, but surprisingly enough, Sasha loved it. She even had to finish her mother's meal, which she did happily and then quickly retreated to her room. Though, before she could, her mother called her down again for a small chat that was doomed to turn south.

"Yes, Ro-mother?" Sasha was still getting used to the idea that this woman was her mother. Before she could see what was happening there was a loud pop and her cheek enveloped in pain. Sasha's eyes were wide. Her mother just slapped her. Her shocked expression turned dark and she glared at her mother.

"Sasha?" She just stared at her in response. "You will never run away again." It wasn't a question. It wasn't a command. It was a declaration.

Sasha rubbed her cheek and smirked. "That it? You feel better now?" She asked with a humorous grin. Rosalie just stared at her with a hard line on her lips.

"You will be attending home school starting on the eighteenth." She told her.

"No." Sasha protested. She wouldn't let this woman cage her in any more.

"No?" Rosalie arched a brow.

"I will be going to school. A real school. Otherwise, I _will_ run away again. I promise you." Sasha declared with just as much ferocity as her mother. With that, she spun on her heel and left to her room, not giving her mother chance to protest.

**-REVIEW!**


	7. Chapter Six

**From the Ashes**

**Author's Note: **I would have to say that the relationship between Sasha and Rosalie was heavily inspired by the relationship between Rapunzel and Mother Gothel (Tangled), and Toph Bei Fong and her parents(A:TLA). You could even say that Sasha was heavily based off Toph Bei Fong, who holds the place as my favorite Avatar character with Zuko and Iroh following closely behind. I should have Sasha call someone "Twinkle Toes," just to tribute that. Ahahahaha! No. Well then, onto the chapter and the usual stuff I say because I love you guys! Enjoy the chapter and don't forget to review, favorite, and/or follow! They help a lot in making the minions work!

**Disclaimer:**

**Chapter Six**

"_He who opens a school door, opens a prison." _–Victor Hugo

**Mount Justice**

**August 8th 12:55 EDT**

Garfield groaned and set down the game controller. It was strange how use he was to hearing Sasha's comments about video games. _I seriously don't know why children your age are exposed to such violence, _that's what she would say, even though she knew Garfield had lived in the thick of the violence displayed on screen. "I miss Sash," He muttered.

Conner answered without thinking, "Why? Don't you remember what she said? She was only here to obtain information, and she got it and left,"

"I don't really think that was how she truly felt, Conner," Kaldur'ahm said from his place against the wall. He didn't believe that Sasha was selfish like that. After all, she did want to stay after finding out about her mother, even though she did reject his offer for her to join the Team.

Raquel, too, was listening, and she added in her own voice. "Didn't you hear her? She said straight to your face that she didn't care. She was smilin' too!"

"I…felt that she was conflicted," Megan said, half listening to the conversation while cleaning. Robin remained silent, as well as Artemis and Zatanna. Though, Wally had a few things to say.

"Whether she cared or not doesn't make a difference. She left, and probably isn't coming back." The speedster said, a bit agitated.

Gar frowned at the oncoming silence. Nobody was really convinced about Sasha being that selfish. Even a part of Conner didn't believe it. A certain blond haired vigilante, then unnoticed, was about to clear that up. "Sasha did care. A lot more than you might think." Black Canary said, drawing attention to her as she stood in the doorway. "She wanted to help, and she wanted to stay. Though, she distanced herself just in case there was the chance that she was truly an enemy, not wanting to really deal with the drama that would come with it. Even if they weren't memories, she was still scared of her past and didn't want to deal with rejection," The woman sighed and crossed her arms. "It wasn't only a guard for you, but also for herself."

Everyone stared at Black Canary for a long while. Some were more surprised than others. Though, no one spoke. With that, Black Canary turned. "C'mon, we've got training to do," She said and turned to walk to the hangar. Hesitantly, the Team followed.

"_Recognized: Batman, 02."_ An electronic voice announced.

"You'll have to hold the training, Black Canary. The Team has a new mission," Batman growled as he entered the hangar with a flash of yellow. He walked over to the center of the room and the holographic system appeared. Displayed were the images of masked and shadowed females getting off a plane in a place off the grid. The Team gathered to view the looping video. "An unknown group has arrived outside New York City, New York. They prove to be very dangerous and very skilled." The display changed to show a video. It was of the same group attacking and killing off people, swiftly and silently. After that, it changed again, to show a close up image of a middle-aged looking woman, masked and sinister looking.

She was the most significant of the group, with long, black hair, form-fitting black suit with black and red armor to accent it, and long katana attached to her hip. On her suit was a rose-like design that traveled up her slender legs and finished in the center of her chest where a large, red, wilting rose was painted on her black breast plate. The woman seemed to lead the group as she merely approached the people, rather than killing them like her subordinates. "This woman is the most identifiable and possibly the head of the group. They made this building, an old warehouse, somewhat of a base. Your mission is to infiltrate and find out who they are and what they want,"

"Shadows?" Conner guessed with a shrug. It seemed obvious to him. So, why wouldn't they just go in there and take care of the problem?

Batman turned to look at him. "It's a possibility, but we need to be sure. The League would handle this, but action against an unknown enemy so close to New York would send the populace into panic." He explained. Aqualad nodded.

"We will find out who they are."

* * *

**Himura Estate**

**August 18th 07:10 EDT**

Sasha did not want to wake up so early in the morning, but she had to in order to keep a little bit of freedom that she had at this new school. Apparently, private school was as far as Rosalie Himura would go as far as school, and she had to pull some serious strings to get her enrolled at such a late notice. Though, Sasha wasn't all too willing to wear the skirt for the school uniform. She death glared at the uniform laid out on her bed, more namely the skirt. Oh how tempted she was to burn the piece of cheap cloth to something a little less than ash.

"Aleksandra! Hurry up, your ride's here," Rosalie's voice called from outside her room. Sasha groaned. That was another thing she didn't want: a chauffeur. In the last seventeen days of living at Himura estates, Sasha taught herself how to skateboard, something she wanted to use while she had no car. Having to catch up with teenage life was a bore, but skateboarding passed the time. She found herself to be a bit of a natural.

The girl dashed off to her bathroom and quickly put in her brown color contacts and ruffled her hair. Then, she dashed out, undressed, and pulled on the uniform, keeping in mind to put on shorts under the skirt. Stumbling as she put on her shoes, Sasha hopped to her down and down the hallway.

"Aleksandra!" Rosalie called.

"Coming! I'm coming!" Sasha called, adding under her breath, "Calm down, crazy lady."

Rosalie stood by the doorway, a backpack in one hand a cellphone in the other. She gave her daughter the bag and, giving her the phone with precaution, she reminded her, "Your schedule is in your bag along with a notebook and the things for your core classes, don't forget to write down what you need for your electives and I'll order them. I want you to call me when you get to school, during lunch, and on your way home, got it?" Sasha gave her mother a dull look and took the phone.

"Got it. But can I please ride my skateboard there? I really don't feel like showing up with a bunch of bodyguards." She said and grabbed her skateboard that was leaning on the wall next to the double doors.

"Aleksandra…" Rosalie drew out, running her hand through her hair.

"Please?" Sasha willed. "I'm almost sixteen, I can take care of myself."

Rosalie thought for a long time before sighing in defeat. "Fine, but I'm going to have them watch you." She said. Sasha groaned inwardly. So, her bodyguards were going to stalk her. Perfect! Well, it was better than being trapped in cold car. Sasha forced on an appreciative smile.

"Thanks, mom!" She said and gave her a quick hug. In the action, Rosalie sniffed her hair. Sasha couldn't help but chuckle. "I used that mineral, citrus scrub you got me. Smell's good, huh?"

"Very. Now, get to school," She said and shooed her off. "Don't forget that if anything happens or if anyone strange talks to you-"

"Come straight home. I know. I got it. Bye!" Sasha rushed out the door and hopped onto her skateboard.

Luckily she left when she did, even though Gotham Academy wasn't far, riding there on skateboard did take a good forty-five minutes. She had fun riding through the city though, it was actually the first time, aside from her trip to her mothers, she got to see the city. No, it wasn't the best sight, and obviously it had its rough edges, but it was a setting Sasha liked. On her board, she weaved through the traffic, not caring if the car that followed her got left behind. In fact, she was hoping that would happen.

"Hmm…let's find a short cut to school shall we?" Sasha muttered and pulled out her phone, accessing the GPS system quite easily. She pulled up a holographic map of the city and the system traced out a path that followed through the alleyways of the city. It wouldn't hurt to go through them, right? It was daylight. Gangsters would have to be smart enough to know it wasn't wise to pull things in the day. With her decision made, Sasha followed the path. Thankfully, it was safe and she arrived at school just in time to spend a few minutes goofing off.

Though, things didn't quite go out as planned thanks to the reporters near the campus. Her eyes narrowed. Rosalie didn't really think to keep it a secret that Sasha was going to school. The reporters seemed to perk up at her appearance, though they gave her questioning looks at her entrance. Sasha guessed that maybe an heiress wasn't expected to skateboard to school through the alleyways of the streets. She kicked up her board an caught it in her hand. She glared at the reporters and tried to shoulder her way through them.

"Aleksandra! How does it feel to finally receive a little elbow room from your mother?"

"Is it true that you've been overseas since your encounter with the press nine years ago?"

"What does your change of schooling mean for Scatter Corps?"

Sasha rolled her eyes and didn't answer any of the questions. She just ignored them until she was on the campus and they had no more authority to question her any further. Even in on the safe side of the road, she was getting strange looked from the kids. They might not know who she was, but they already guessed Sasha wasn't your average rich kid. The students tossed her dirty and questioning glares as she entered the courtyard. Ignoring them, Sasha dug through her bag and pulled out her papers. First, she'd need to find a locker and put her board up, she really didn't want to carry it all day. Though, the information on the papers read to her like a foreign language.

"Damn…" She muttered and looked around, as if she would find someone she actually knew.

"Aleksandra Volkov?" An oddly familiar voice asked her and she turned around to meet the gaze of a boy about her age. He was almost, just barely a head taller than her and held a sort of charming composure. He was in the boys' uniform for Gotham Academy, nothing really different from the girls except the skirt. His hair was black and styled nicely, something that she had to admit, didn't look the best on him, but she couldn't complain, and his eyes were a really pretty shade of electric blue. That was saying something since Sasha found herself not favoring the color blue much. The kid was actually kinda cute.

_SASHA! _Her mental voice scolded, and she quickly erased such thoughts from her mind, allowing herself to avoid the keeping blush on her cheeks. Moving on, Sasha arched a brow in question.

"I think, therefore I am. You can just call me Sasha, though." She replied, causing him to laugh.

"You know that's not exactly how the phrase is used?" The boy questioned with a smile.

Sasha rolled her eyes. "I knew that. It just seemed to fit in the situation," She said with a shrug.

He chuckled and held out a hand. "Richard Grayson. People call me Dick." He introduced. Sasha shook his head, but held a questioning look.

"I hope it's just because it's short for Richard…" She muttered with a smirk. Dick laughed.

"Don't worry, it is. Anyway, I'm your student liaison, so I'm supposed to show you around." He informed her. Sasha's eyes narrowed and all playfulness dropped.

"You mean like an escort? Did my mom hire you or something? Because if she did, I'm surprised you're of the male species." She questioned suspiciously, though Dick looked completely clueless.

"No. It's school policy and I just happened to get paired up with you, since we have the same core classes, well except math, since I'm about two classes ahead of you…" He stopped himself before he could ramble off into something that might bore the new-girl. Sasha was quite surprised that Rosalie didn't try and bribe the school for a non-male escort. "By the way, why would you be surprised that I'm a guy?"

Sasha sighed and ran a hand through her hair, shifting in her position. "Rosalie may or may not hate all men…" She hinted with a chuckle. She didn't care if he told everyone around the school, or the press, and gave her mother a bad impression. If anything, she was hoping for that to happen. Dick's eyebrows shot up in surprise.

"Really?" Before he could question how Sasha came around, she spoke.

"Yeah. Anyway, well, since you're here, I might as well tell you that this little piece of paper," She held up the slip that had her classes and locker number. "Might be written in some alien language that math braniacs can read." She flashed a smile as he took the paper. Yes, she was indeed implying that Dick Grayson was a math brainiac.

Dick looked over the paper after glancing at her. "Don't like math?" He asked.

"I found out recently I might hate it…" Sasha admitted. She barely passed the math entry test for the Academy.

"If you need tutoring, I'm always available." He offered with a laugh.

"I might have to take you up on that…" She drew out her sentence, searching for some sort of nickname to give this kid. The girl couldn't think of anything. "Damn it, you don't have a witty nickname." She grimaced.

Dick smirked and for some strange reason, Sasha felt like she saw that smirk before. "That might be a good thing, Sash. C'mon, let's go," He tried to grab her hand, but she quickly pulled away. Sasha grinned devilishly and shook her head.

"Lesson number one: don't grab at my hand." She warned jokingly.

After that, the two concluded their drawn out introduction, and headed inside. Dick showed her to her locker where she put up her skateboard. Luckily, the locker wasn't too small, even if it was a snug fit. That was when Dick started questioning her about her skateboarding.

"Oh, well, I found out I kinda like skateboarding and since my mom's kinda been a stick, I don't really a driver's license, or a permit for that matter." She said with a tug on the strap of her backpack. Sasha couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed that she didn't have a license or permit like the other kids her age would. It was a price to pay for the lack of memories.

"Really?" Dick asked, though he didn't sound all that surprised. Almost like he knew. "That must suck, and you don't have a chauffeur?"

Sasha glowered. "I really don't want one, they're all just a bunch of people my mom hired to keep an eye on me. I'm surprised I don't have someone following me," She explained, throwing a glance over her shoulder. Nope. Nothing but hormonal teenagers and Artemis. Sasha froze. Artemis? The girl did a full on spin around to see the blond walking through the hallway. Sasha didn't know if it was a good idea to go talk to the girl or not, so she tried to act like she didn't notice anything. Though, when she turned back around to continue her chat with Dick, he had a knowing smile on his face.

"Looking for someone?" He asked. Sasha shook her head.

"Nope," Was her reply. "Just thought I saw someone who…" She strained for the words. "My mom probably hired!"

Dick looked skeptical, but took the excuse anyway. "Right." He said with a grin. "We should get to class. We both have first period together," With that the school bell rang and the two made their way to English. Dick informed her that her next class was one of her electives, art, and that he wouldn't be able to show her to the class. Afterward, she would have Algebra Two, then lunch. Entering the class for English, the two took their seats. Sasha sat at an open desk by the window and Dick sat down not far away beside a redhead who held a kind smile as he sat down.

The teacher soon came into the room. She was a young-looking, African-American woman with a slim, curvy body. Her dark hair was waist-length and a seriously dark shade of brown, if not black. Her eyes were a shadowy brown, and her face was sharp featured with full lips. She smiled and stood behind the desk. "Hello, and welcome to your year as juniors. I'm Ms. Evans, your English teacher for this year. You might recognize me as the current phycology teacher, otherwise it's nice to meet you." Ms. Evans sat down in her chair and pulled up a few papers.

"First and foremost, I'd like to congratulate Miss Aleksandra Volkov for making the highest score on the English entry test this year," The woman said with a smile directed at the new girl. Sasha's eyes widened at this statement. The test was easy and she knew she at least passed it, but she didn't expect to get the best score. There was a small, very brief applause before Sasha smiled coyly and sort of hid herself.

"Thank you, Ms. Evans." She said just loud enough for her voice to carry over to the woman. Ms. Evans smiled and nodded her head before continuing on with class, starting with the introductions. Sasha barely paid attention to them, though she did catch a name on the pretty looking redhead. Barbra Gordon was apparently the daughter of Gotham's police commissioner, Jim Gordon. She seemed like a smart girl. Sasha also found out that Dick Grayson was the ward for the richest man in Gotham, Bruce Wayne. She didn't know much about the billionaire playboy, only that he was competition to Scatter. Apparently, he had offered to merge the companies when Rosalie first moved Scatter Corps to American, but her hatred of men struck and she refused. A bad business move, if Sasha had a word on it.

That also brought her thoughts to the subject of the family business. Sasha was supposed to start taking business lessons at home, even though Rosalie had hired people to actually run Scatter Corps. She really didn't want to mess around with economics, though she wouldn't mind learning more about the merchandise. Some of it, if she could have it specially shipped, could help her if she decided to actually go on the hero gig. No, that was a bad idea. She really shouldn't be thinking about it. Rosalie was right. What did the people have to give her in return? _Listen to yourself, Sash, you sound like you're damned mother…_

Right. Sasha was many things: rude, impatient, a complete smartass, and hot-tempered, but she wasn't her mother. Rosalie Himura was selfish, materialistic, and a snob. She didn't want to be like her.

"Aleksandra?" Ms. Evans' voice brought Sasha back to reality, and she looked up to see all eyes on her.

"Y-Yes?" Sasha's voice hitched slightly, to her disliking.

There was a small bubble to laughter from part of the class that died down quickly after a quick glare from the teacher. She cleared her through. "Your introduction, Miss Volkov?" The woman offered.

"Oh, right…" Sasha muttered and stood from her seat. "Uh, the name's Aleksandra Volkov, though I'd like to go by Sasha. I'm the heiress to Scatter Corps, and that's about it, so, yeah." She quickly sat down back in her chair and hid from the world, pulling out a book from her bag and sliding it between herself and the desk, trying to hide it from prying eyes. Sasha was already bored, and she knew that maybe reading during class wasn't the best idea, so she figured it would be best to try not to be caught.

She was reading Pirate Latitudes, by Michael Crichton. Sasha sort of had a thing for the swashbuckling stories of pirates, surprising for a girl who was afraid of the water. She found the action and adventure quite intriguing, though she could live without the romance. She knew that, in fact, pirates were truly savages in their golden age. Ravaging towns, raping women, killing the innocent without any second thought. Sometimes she didn't quite know if she liked the stories for the irony of how the author portrays pirates, or if she actually thought the story was good.

"Hey, you really shouldn't read during class, Volkov," an irritating voice whispered to her. Sasha glared at her book, but didn't turn around to face who was talking to her.

"It's the first day of school, it's not like I'm going to miss anything." Sasha threw over her shoulder

"Just because you got the highest score, doesn't mean you're the smartest," The voice taunted. "In fact, you must be like the other delinquents and scholarship kids." Now Sasha was a bit pissed. She turned around and smirked at the kid that bothered her. It was a brown haired boy, dark green eyes, and a brutish look.

Sasha chuckled heartlessly. "Really, now? Why? Is it because I snuck out to a party at age seven and ran away to Russia at age ten? Or maybe it's because I refuse to come in a Bentley or limo, like the rest of you snobs? Please, enlighten me with your bullshit," She hissed lowly, making sure only a few heard her. The few that did threw her shocked, wide-eyed stares. She took note that both Barbra Gordon and Dick heard her spiteful tone. The boy infront of her just bristled in response. Sasha didn't allow him the time to speak. "Oh, you're done? Awesome!"

With that, she continued reading her book throughout the class. When Ms. Evens began listing the supplies she needed, Sasha took out her notebook and wrote them down before the bell rang and class ended. She rushed away to her next class before Dick could talk to her, and continued with her day.

* * *

**Gotham Academy**

**August 18th 12:30 EDT**

Thankfully, lunch arrived smoothly. Nothing happened much for the text two classes. Her art teacher was nice, the Algebra Two teacher was a complete stick. Somehow, Sasha managed to slip by the morning without being ticked off or ticking off anyone. After leaving Algebra Two, Sasha finally remembered to check her phone. She'd forgotten to call her mother when she arrived at school, and in return earned three missed calls by one Rosalie Himura. She sighed. Sasha really didn't want to call her mother. She did anyway.

Rosalie answered right after the first ring. "Aleksandra Volkov, you did not call me like I asked you to! Not only that, but you deliberately avoided your guards on the way to school and took the back streets. Do you realize you could've been killed?" She nearly screamed into the phone. Sasha let out a sigh, wishing her mother could see her scowl.

"Mom. I'm fine. I ditched the stalkers because they're creepy and I'm sorry about forgetting to call you, it won't happen again." Sasha said with a bored tone as she walked down the hall towards the courtyard.

"You're damn right it won't happen again!"

Sasha shouted into the phone before Rosalie could make this argument any worse. "Yeah, it won't, so stop hounding me!" And she shut off her phone, ending the conversation. She knew she'd pay for that later, but frankly, she didn't care. Quickly, the girl made it to the courtyard, once again lost in the sea of teenagers. Masked amber eyes found the two people she knew. They were actually sitting together at a table. Huh, small world. Along with them, were a blond and the redhead from English, Barbra. Dick waved her over, and with that, Sasha felt a bit more welcomed to the area. She walked over to them and sat down.

"Hey, Sash, glad you could make it!" Dick said with a smile.

Sasha chuckled lightly. "Yeah, me too," Her tone was tired and she laid her head down on the table. She looked up at the surrounding girls, nearly forgetting her manners. "Oh, right. I'm Sasha."

"Barbra Gordon," The redhead spoke up. "That over there is Bette Kane," She pointed to the unknown blond who waved kindly. "and Artemis Crock."

"We know each other," Artemis said smugly. Sasha felt a bit relieved. So she was allowed to act like she knew the girl.

The two girls, Barbra and Bette, looked kind of surprised. Sasha barely noticed the knowing aura that burned off Dick. Maybe he was just being a smartass. "You guys know each other?" Barbra asked, arching her brow.

Sasha nodded. "Yup," She popped the 'p.' "I didn't want to say anything that might embarrass you, Arty." The girl said the name with a smirk.

"Ha-ha, don't push it, Russian," Artemis gave her a pointed look, and Sasha, being the mature fifteen-year-old she was, stuck out her tongue in defense.

"You know you love it!" She sniggered.

Bette and Barbra gave each other glances, Dick just continued smiling. "Good to know you're having a good first day." He said.

Sasha was about to open her mouth to correct that no, she wasn't quite having the best first day, when another, new voice interrupted her. "At least someone is," The girl turned around to see two younger classmen approaching them. One being a brute looking sophomore, with black hair combed back, though several rebel hairs managed to stray infront of his face, and piercing green eyes. The kid burned off a bit of rebelliousness, but it seemed to hide behind a mask of a regular teenager. The other was a young girl with bleached, platinum, blond hair styled messily, parted in a way so her bangs swept across her face, barely long enough to cover her mossy green eyes, her skin tone was fair, and it was obvious she dyed her hair because of her richly, dark, brown eyebrows.

"Hey, Jase," Dick waved and eyed the girl, recognition flashing in his eyes. "Is that you, Blaire?"

The girl half-smiled and shrugged. "Yup. Finally got in with a scholarship, thanks to your dad and my smarts," Blaire said, though she frowned. "I really could live without the insults, though."

"Insults?" Sasha's voice chipped into the conversation. She didn't care if she wasn't invited.

"About her living in Crime Alley and barely being able to afford the uniform," Jason said, his eyes narrowed at Sasha. "You are?"

"Aleksandra Volkov," Blaire answered before Sasha could, earning some surprised glances. "Heiress to Scatter Corp, a company mainly established in Japan that focuses on advanced technology, weaponry, and self-defense manufacturing." She said as though she was reciting it from some sort of business bible. Sasha was then about to speak, but Blaire interrupted once again. "It's known best for the insanely advanced technology it produces and fuses into their custom weapons. Of recent events, though, Scatter Corps is famous for the cyber-attack on their American databases in New York City."

Everyone gave the girl wide-eyed stares, except for Jason, who seemed pretty uninterested, and Dick, who once again held a very smug, knowing smile. Sasha was impressed. Apparently this chick knew more about her own company than herself. For a moment, Sasha didn't quite know how to respond. Jason looked as though he really couldn't care less, complete disinterest.

Blaire chuckled, breaking her serious air. "Don't worry, I'm not a stalker. I just have way too much downtime," She assured, baring a smile that seemed slightly forced. Jason let out a bark of laughter, and she replied by jabbing him in the rib. "I'm Blaire Grey, friend of this idiot." She jammed her thumb at Jason.

Now he was responsive. "Hey, I'm not an idiot!" He protested. Blaire shot him an amused look.

"Keep telling yourself that, Jay," Her eyes narrowed at the boy and she poked him in the arm. He showed more hurt face than Sasha anticipated. "Where are your manners?" She asked sharply.

Jason looked as though he didn't know what the girl was talking about until he looked over at Sasha. He had yet to introduce himself. "Jason Todd." He said gruffly and his gaze moved over to Dick. "I'm his adoptive brother."

"Sasha," She replied briefly and then turned to look at Dick. "Didn't know you had a brother,"

Dick smiled with all his charm. "The information wasn't relevant." Sasha opened her mouth to respond when Artemis spoke up.

"Hey, Sasha, can I talk to you real quick, before lunch ends?" The archer asked. Sasha looked up. What did Artemis want to talk about? Maybe what was new with the team.

"Sure," Sasha answered. The two girls got up, and together they walked someplace private. The younger of the two groaned. "You have no idea how glad I am to see you, Artemis."

Artemis smiled slightly. "Me too. The whole Team misses you, Sash." She said with a bit of sadness in her voice.

Sasha stood silent. How much she missed the Team too. A huge part of her was still mad at how her mother reacted to her wanted to take up heroing. Maybe now was her chance to apologize about her selfish behavior and explain that she wanted to come back. But what good would that do?

"I miss the Team. I-I'm sorry about being such a jerk to you all before I left, I really didn't mean it," She began to explain. "It's just-"

"I know," Artemis interrupted. The ebony-haired girl looked at her, wide eyes full of shock.

"You know?" She murmured. The blond nodded.

"Yeah. Black Canary told us," She explained and continued, not letting Sasha respond. "Sasha, why didn't you tell us? We, or at least I, wouldn't have thought of you any less if you turned out to be trained to kill in the past. What matters is who you are now, you know that,"

Sasha did know that. She even said that this memory loss was a means of a new beginning. She shouldn't be so afraid of the past anymore, but she was. The girl sighed and looked away. "I know. I just didn't want to risk it,"

Artemis held a frown for a little while longer and then pulled on a half-smile. "Well, now you know, maybe we can try and get you on the Team."

"Ha!" Sasha scoffed. "I wish. I mentioned the hero gig to my mom and she went hysterical!"

"What?" Artemis asked, a bit disgusted. "What does she have against heroes?"

The girl shrugged and rolled her eyes. "I don't freaking know and I really don't care." She said and crossed her arms.

"Well, what are you going to do?" Artemis asked.

"I-I don't know, yet. I'll figure something out," Sasha said and the bell rang shortly after. She took a quick breath and was thankful that she brought her bag with her. "We should go. See you after school?"

"Yeah," Artemis said and with a quick wave, the two separated. Sasha once again met up with Dick and she remembered that she had Religious World with him, as well as Physics 101. The girl couldn't help but think that Dick was probably one of the few friends she'd have here at the Academy, and then chuckled mentally at the mental breakdown her mother would have when she found out the first friend she made at school was the son of a billionaire playboy. Then again, what Rosalie didn't know wouldn't kill her.

"So, what's Religious World about?" Sasha inquired out of the blue as they walked to class together. Dick shrugged.

"My guess is that it's about the five main religions, maybe a little mythology." He said. "Apparently the teacher we have studied religions his whole life, went to the temples in Tibet, studied at the Roman Catholic Church – in Rome- lived in Israel and India, etc." The teen listed nonchalantly, as though everyone should know about this. Sasha sure as hell didn't.

"Oh," She murmured absently and groaned. "Why does school have to end?"

That was something Dick didn't hear every day. Generally kids would hate having to go to school. "You don't want to get out of school." It wasn't a question, but Sasha treated it like one.

The heiress nodded. "If it means I have to go home, then nope. I'm perfectly fine living here rather than the Himura Estate." She said her household name like it was a joke and rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Rosalie has a way of making me feel like my own home is a prison." She grumbled, not noticing she was speaking her thoughts aloud. Dick eyed her curiously.

"Why don't you just hang out around the city after school?" He suggested but Sasha just scoffed.

"Yeah, right. And risk having to go back into home schooling? No thanks," She said gruffly and rolled her shoulders back. "I'll find a loophole in my imprisonment, I always do."

On that note, the two found their class and took their seats. Sasha sat in the back row in a corner, and Dick sat in a seat infront of her. She didn't recognize any of the students in the class. Then the teacher came in. Her first impression on the man was English. The man was probably in his late thirties, fit and young looking, and very well groomed. The hair on his head was a dark shade of brown and had a very noticeable widows peak, he had bruiting side burns and a slight mustache. The teacher wore a white dress shirt under a black vest and tie, over it was a dark brown, tweed blazer, and he wore slacks of the same color. Peeling off his blazer, the man threw it casually on his desk and his hand swiped over the sill on the chalkboard to steal away the chalk.

Quickly, he wrote in cursive his name, Dr. Albertson, and the word "religion," making sure to underline it. Dr. Albertson turned sharply, his hands behind him, resting on the chalkboard sill, and a very daring expression on his face. He questioned clearly in an Englishman's accent, "What is religion? C'mon now, there are no right or wrong answers,"

A girl spoke up. "Religion is the belief in god." She said confidently, though this earned a chalk torpedo to the head.

"Wrong."

* * *

Religious World went by smoothly and Sasha found herself quite fond of her teacher. Afterwards, she walked with Dick to Physics 101, which a class she soon found to be a bit boring, but managed to stay awake in the duration it lasted, and she continued on to Psyche 1, a class taught by her English teacher. After that was probably her favorite class of the day: Dance. Another thing that seemed to come at a natural to her. It only seemed logical with the steps, and they were very familiar with the moves she learned while training with the Team. Hell, over her time being fighting, she found that dancing was a way to direct her skills. Everything had a beat, a rhythm, and movement. Fighting, dancing, walking, running, etc.

In dance, the class went over the warm ups and basic formations for ballet, and then moved onto other styles of dancing. In the class, she met someone she rather liked. His name was Ivan Dale. So far, he was one of the most flaming males she'd ever met. Straight away, he made sure he was cool with her being gay. Apparently, he got a lot of crap about it and wanted to make sure Sasha wasn't a complete jerk before he befriended her. Most of the time the two spent the hour getting to know each other before the bell rang, tell the whole school that it was time to leave. Sasha groaned and rolled her eyes.

"Dammit," She hissed and picked up her bag.

"Don't want to go home?" Ivan questioned curiously.

Sasha shook her head. "Nope."

With a shimmy of his shoulders, he pushed her lightly to the side. "I could take you shopping!" He offered, but the younger of the two had to decline with a wave of her hand.

"Can't. My mother would have a cow," She flash a smile. "Thanks, though, Ivan."

"Anytime, my little fox," He said jokingly with a pat on her head. "I'll see you on the flip side," With that, he dashed out the door. Sasha wasn't quite sure what he meant, but went along with it anyhow before walking out of the studio and towards her locker. There she retrieved her skateboard and quickly made her way outside. By the luck of fate, once outside, Sasha ran into Dick again. He was heading towards a black car that awaited him on the curb.

"Oh, hey!" He waved shortly. "Going home?"

"Uh…" Sasha was about to answer when she received a text on her phone. She glanced down at it and read the message quickly.

**Meet me by the Zeta-Beam. –Artemis**

How did Artemis get her number? Quickly waving away her questions she looked back up at Dick who just continued smile. "Uh, yeah. I gotta go. Thanks for showing me around. Bye!" She said hastily and hopped onto her board, rolling off into the street.

* * *

**Gotham City**

**August 18th 15:30 ETD**

"This better be good, Artemis. I told you how strict my mother was about me coming home. It took me about half an hour to ditch her personal stalkers just to get here." Sasha growled lowly as she walked down the alleyway, quickly greeted by the blond who was already in her uniform. The two stood outside the Zeta-Beam, which was a very rusty looking phone booth. Artemis rolled her brown eyes at the girl.

"Sorry, but this is kinda urgent. I wanted to warn you about something we found out about ten days ago in a mission." Artemis explained. Sasha crossed her arms and looked at the blond, mentally telling her to continue. "It was supposed to be a regular mission. Apparently some new group made its way into America in New York and we had to get the info on it. We were ambushed,"

Sasha visibly paled at this. Normally, she wouldn't allow her emotions about the Team to show like that, but this was a different story. They were ambushed by an unknown group on unknown terms. If it weren't for Artemis's presence, they could've all been dead without her ever knowing. "Ambushed?" She breathed the word. Her head snapped up, her eyes narrow. "Everyone's okay, right?"

"Yeah, of course. The only thing they hurt was Wally's pride, really," She said with a scoff, but her expression grimed as she looked back at Sasha. "The thing is, their leader…she said they were after the flame in the scattered roses."

Sasha's brow furrowed. "A flame in the scattered roses? What the hell is that supposed to mean?" She questioned, her tone rising a bit. Her question was already answered, but she didn't want to face the truth.

Artemis looked at her with concern. "Sash, they're after you,"

* * *

**-REVIEW!**


	8. Chapter Seven

**From the Ashes**

**Author's Note: **Hey guys! Sorry about the late update! I had a crammed weekend and didn't get the chapter finished in time. Anyway, guess what? We hit over one thousand views! *Fireworks* Woohoo! To thank you lovelies for that, I have a special surprise for you at the bottom of this chapter! Also, I'm really curious as to what your guesses are for what's to come next in "From the Ashes" so feel free to write up your predictions in the review box!

As usual, don't forget to review, favorite, and/or follow! Thank you for reading! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **I do ******NOT** own**Young Justice**, **DC **or any other reference I make in** From the Ashes. **I just own the plot and my OCs.

**Chapter Seven**

"I'm revving at full throttle!" -Edward Elric, FMA: Brotherhood

**Gotham City - Himura Estate**

**August 18th 18:47 EDT**

_Okay. Okay. Try to calm down, Sasha. _The heiress to Scatter Corp thought to herself as she rolled up to her house on her skateboard. _How the hell can I calm down?! Some chaotic freak group is out for me, and you want me to calm down?! _Another side of her mind screeched. Sasha had to get her nerve together before having to face the current threat at hand. The wrath of Rosalie Himura.

Her efforts were futile.

This was not going to be fun.

Fumbling to pick up her board, the girl walked up to the door. Her hand rested on the silver doorknob that felt unnaturally cold and sensitive to her skin, and, slowly, the girl creaked the door open, hoping her mother wouldn't notice her coming home. Rosalie was about to have the whole damn farm. "Aleksandra Sasha Volkov!" The slick, smooth voice dripped with venom as deadly as fluoroantimonic acid.*

Masked eyes turned to face the woman who waited at the foot of the staircase, her slim eyebrows arched, and her face twisted into a nasty snarl. "Where the hell have you been, young lady?" Rosalie snapped loudly at the girl, causing her to visibly flinch. Quickly, she straightened to defend herself.

"Rosalie, I can expla-" She started, but her mother cut her off.

"Ha! I don't need a fucking explanation!" Rosalie said with a scornful scoff. "I was worried sick! First you forget to call me when you arrive at school, then you hang up on me when you finally call me, and when it couldn't get worse you decided to deliberately disobey me, ditch your supervisors, and not even bother to send me a damn text that you were okay!"

There's the farm.

"What the hell were you thinking?! You even turned off the tracking device in your phone! How the hell did you manage that, huh?" Oh, wait. It might be the whole zoo! "_Why_ did you turn off the tracking device?" Rosalie's eyes widened in disbelief as something dawned on her. "Were you meeting with a boy? Or was it that stupid sidekick of the idiot who dresses like a damned bat every night?"

Now she was crossing the line. "Hey, look, I'm sorry, _your highness_!" Sasha snapped before Rosalie could continue. "No, I wasn't meeting up with Robin or Batman, for that matter!" It wasn't a lie. "I turned off the tracking device because I knew you'd freak! I told you already: I'm almost sixteen – I can take care of myself just finely without you trying to control my life! I did just fine for six years in Russia with dad. I did just fine when I was training with the heroes! I-" The girl stopped in sudden realization of what she had said. Her eyes went wide and suddenly her blood turned into ice water. Rosalie wasn't supposed to know about training with the Team.

"You what?" Rosalie questioned. Sasha could almost see the steam coming out of her ears. "Training with heroes? Sasha, what did I say about this hero business?" She asked through clenched teeth.

"You're the one who brought up the subject about me seeing Robin, who, by the way, isn't just some stupid sidekick." Sasha protested, not finding it weird at all that she was defending Bird Brain. "Since you're so damn sensitive about the subject, I'll just go to my room. It won't happen again!" She growled and began up the stairs, but Rosalie's nimble hand snatched hers, claw-like nails digging into the skin underneath her jacket. She had hoped to drag her daughter back to face her, but Sasha was too strong.

"Aleksandra, stop it!" The mother demanded.

"No, you stop it!" Sasha snarled and jerked her hand back. "Leave me alone." She growled before hurrying to her room, being sure to lock the door as she rushed in. The girl leaned on the door and let out a deep breath. That couldn't have gone any smoother. With the situation passed, Sasha threw her skateboard to the side, and tossed her backpack on her bed. First thing she did was strip off her clothes and change into some black shorts and her white wife beater, then she hopped onto her bed, bringing her laptop with her, and pulled out something from her bag. It was a small, sleek, black flash drive.

"_Look, I don't have a lot of time, so just take this flash drive. It has the video feed we recorded during the mission as well as some other information." Artemis handed the girl a flash drive. "Don't tell Bats I gave you this. He didn't want to worry you, but I thought you should know." _

Artemis's words echoed in Sasha's mind as she stared at the thirty-two GB USB drive. Who knows what data could be stored in there. Quickly, she turned on her computer, signed in, and plugged in the USB.

* * *

_This is the general text from the past/during the mission. "__**This is the mind talking stuff." **_

_**New York City**_

_**August 8th 21:25 EDT**_

"_Approaching the drop zone, going into camouflage mode." Miss Martian said, her tone serious and quiet as her mental commands turned the bio-ship near transparent. _

"_Be careful, we're heading into territory of an unknown enemy," Aqualad warned, though not everyone took it seriously._

"_They aren't expecting us are they? We should be fine! Sneak in, sneak out, the usual, right?" Wally said with a casual shrug. He knew that every mission should be treated with caution, but he didn't like to be reminded of it. _

_Aqualad sighed. "Yes, but it would be wise to stay wary," The leader said. The bio-ship came to a halt and the organic seats retracted, releasing the team from their places. Standing and getting ready, the Team moved to the center of the bio ship where a small hole appeared to open out to the outside of the warehouse that harbored the unknown group. One at a time, each member jumped down from the bio-ship, and at the same time, they all received the mental note: __**"Psychic link established."**_

"_**Robin, Megan Zatanna and Artemis, you four will find and back entrance while Conner, Garfield, Wally, Rocket and I take a head on course through the front. Are we clear?" **__Aqualad questioned mentally towards his team. Robin nodded quickly and motioned for his portion of the team to follow as they dashed off. Luckily, everything was in close proximity, so the link that connected the Team's minds remained as they split. Miss M. flew slightly ahead of the second squad, her image slightly see-through. Artemis and Robin ran nearly side-by-side with Zatanna close to them. _

"_**Any idea what the rose lady can do?"**__ Kid Flash's voice cut through the silence of focused minds. Artemis and Zatanna shared a glance, as if to ask what they had in mind. Both girls shrugged. _

"_**Dunno."**__ Robin thought. __**"She didn't do anything in the video feed we briefed over, she just kinda stood there…" **_

"_**As long as it isn't anything like Clayface," **__came Beast Boy's input, his thoughts wavering a bit with a chill. __**"That guy is just gross…" **_

"_**We're almost to the back of the warehouse,"**__ Robin directed his thoughts mostly to his leader as his part of the Team approached the corner of the eastern part of the warehouse. They arrived quickly and silently, Miss Martian used her powers to pry open an air shaft above the others, making sure to be as quiet as possible. Thanks to her refined powers, she succeeded in doing just that. Robin helped both Artemis and Zatanna into the shaft and jumped in after them with Miss Martian flying in behind. __**"We're in."**_

"_**Good job. Get to the center of the warehouse, we'll draw any attention if needed from the front before moving in," **__Aqualad informed. There was a pause as the other half of the team moved through the ventilation system before Rocket's thoughts registered in their minds. _

"_**Uh, yeah, y'know if there was any attention to **_**draw!**_**" **__Rocket sounded a little disappointed and angry. __**"Where the heck are those ninjas?"**_

_Miss M. visibly jerked back before doing a mental scan for anyone around them. __**"I don't feel anyone,"**__ She informed the Team and looked at Robin who was looking through the inferred setting on his holocomupter. There was nothing but cold steel in the areas of the building he scanned. _

"_**Not picking anything up either,"**__ Robin thought with a frown. _

"_**Rendezvous at the center of the building now."**__ It was Aqualad's stern voice that commanded them. Eventually Artemis, who was ahead of the group, found an opening to the main room of the building. With the silent ok from Robin, she opened the vent and dropped down to the floor, Zatanna and Robin trailed behind, and Miss Martian levitated herself down. The four looked around. Nothing. It was just a cold, empty, shadowy warehouse. It could've been possible that the group had left their temporary base to make something a little more permanent, but it was only two days since the JLA received the footage of their arrival. Artemis was getting a bad feeling from this. _

"_So, what now?" She asked vocally to the others. "Obviously there's no one here, right?" The masked archer was more trying to get out of there than get answers. _

_The front door opened and in came the rest of the team with Conner at the front, a scowl on his face. "Obviously." The Kyptonian growled and crossed his arms. From behind him, Aqualad approached with a serious expression. _

"_We need to gather evidence that they were here and left, it could give us something to hint at where they would be," He said and looked at Robin pointedly. The Boy Wonder gave a lopsided smile, already knowing what Aqualad was hinting at. Artemis rolled her eyes. The smug little punk. _

"_Leave that to me," He said and pulled up the holocomupter and began scoping the area. Following his lead, Beast Boy formed into a blood hound and began snooping out the place, his wet nose glued to the ground. Zatanna stepped up with an uneasy expression. _

"_They might still be here…I-I don't feel too well about this place." She admitted and crossed her arms, her face was serious and her eyes were narrow, but her voice wavered with worry. "Isn't it a bit too…shady?" The magician looked around and so did the others. Yeah, it was really shady. The quarter moon cast ghastly shadows along the concrete wall and the trees outside didn't help but make the place even spookier. _

_To add to the creepy vibe burning off the place, there was a very malicious chuckle from the dark, soon accompanied by others. The Team went on high alert and withdrew their weapons and got ready to fight. "Haha, I think it isn't shady enough, magician whelp," The first voice echoed throughout the halls. "Nothing that I can't help, though," With that said, the shadows began to bend and twist before snaking out faster than the human eye could perceive and intertwining around the bodies of each teenager. _

_Shadowy ribbons entangled around their bodies and lifted them into the air like a spider web, restricting even Superboy of movement. Beast Boy attempted at shifting forms to get out of the trap, but each form failed as the shadows just shrunk down to whatever shape he chose. The strain on their limbs made Aqualad, Robin, and Artemis drop their weapons. _

"_Teg eth swodahs-" Zatanna began but the voice interrupted her, as well as shadowy snakes. _

"_Shut up, brat," The voice snapped, and other voices just laughed at the results of Zatanna's failed attempts to free herself and her friends. "Anyway, I suppose I should search you." The slick voice said as the shadows twisted around their bodies, checking each nook and cranny of their persons for anything threatening to the enemy. Each object dropped to the ground with a metal clang. "Hmm, even if you did fight me, you don't have anything to suppress my shadows. What a shame." _

"_Who are you?! Show yourself!" Aqualad barked at the mysterious and hidden woman. More fits of laughter echoed through the warehouse. _

"_Why would I do that? Besides, I'm sure the video feed we allowed to get to your masters revealed me just fine," The voice said smoothly and calmly. It clicked. The one who could control these shadows, bend them to her will, was the woman decked in black and red armor, complimented by the engravings of a labyrinth of vines, thorns, and that single, wilting rose. It also became clear that this was all planned. The video being found, sending in someone to investigate, all for this little trap. But why?_

"_I suppose you could call me Wilt," The woman said and stepped out of the shadows. She wasn't much different besides the long black cloak with a red interior and the black, leather, surgical mask that covered her mouth and nose she wore. Dark eyes glinted dangerously as she looked up at the teens caught in her shadowy web from the darkness casted by the hood of her cloak that rested over her head. _

_Behind her approached the female ninjas dressed in black. Each uniform was identical: form fitting with their shirts cut and torn in different ways to show off their tattoos that resembled the shadowy tendrils Wilt could control, they too wore the mask that Wilt did. There were many off them and it was clear their numbers grew in the past two days from a dozen to nearly fifty. Each woman was armed to the teeth with advanced and deadly looking weapons. They all stood at their leader's side, organized, and loyal. _

_Conner growled. "Shadows?" He guessed from their appearances. Wilt only laughed. _

"_As if. Those minorities are just a small bump in our path to glory. No. We are the group that painted villages the color red for eons and eons. The Blades." Wilt began, the muscles on her face turning slightly, as though she were smirking behind that mask. "We never wanted to come to the Americas, but here we are, unfortunately. We're here for unfinished business, I guess is what you could call it." _

_At that her warriors laughed, as though it were some sick inside joke. Artemis couldn't take it. Her face twisted into a nasty snarl as she spoke, "What do you want?"_

"_To snap out the flame amongst scattered roses. Your little Justice League of America will help me find her, whether you want to or not," She said. Artemis would have flinched had her body not been completely restrained. Sasha. It had to be. Her shock and familiarity was not unnoticed by Wilt. Her dark eyes danced with amusement. "See? You already made me one step closer," _

_The Team shot Artemis alarmed glances, some held the same recognition that she felt. No doubt that some of them would make the connection. Though, the Team remained impassive to Wilt's motives. "What do you want with her?" Robin growled, and Wilt's gaze moved from Artemis to the Boy Wonder who continued to struggle through the shadows. She scoffed. _

"_The girl has a funny way of not staying dead like she's supposed to," _

"_We won't help you!" Kid Flash snarled, his voice so far the loudest among the Team. That wasn't surprising. Though, the Blades just laughed at him, all except Wilt who remained calm, but amused. _

"_She's given you no choice," _

_The shadows took over the world, and their visions went black._

* * *

**Gotham City - Himura Estate**

**August 19th 05:03 EDT**

Sasha woke with a start, her eyes wide and her breathing heavily. Her dreams were invaded by the echoing voice of Wilt, the woman who had an interest in killing her. _She's given you no choice. _That was the scary one. What did she have to do with making the Team and the Justice League help Wilt in finding Sasha? The girl could think of a thousand answers and none of them she liked. The worst one was that by meeting them, by getting to know them, Sasha had endangered their lives and Wilt would torture, maybe even kill to get the information out of them. She couldn't allow that.

The knowledge of this information just willed her more into wanting to join their Team. Perhaps by doing that, she could protect them.

The teen sighed and reminded herself that they didn't need protecting. They could protect themselves just fine. Then the images of Wilt's power came back to her. What good could Sasha do against her shadows, though? She was still new to her powers, and the Team had trained for years and years, not even they could get past those deadly shadows. Shoving her thoughts away, Sasha shook her head clean and wiped sweat from her brow. How funny was it that a girl who could control fire was seating? Her body still functioned like a human, that much was clear to her.

After trying to go back to sleep for about ten minutes, she gave up and threw her heavy blankets off her. She sat up, cross-legged, and moved her hands towards the candles lit on her nightstand. The flames flickered violently before lifting off the wick and into the air, growing larger at the motion they received as they levitated to hover over the palms of her hands. Turning her hands inwards and up, she joined the two flames together infront of her face and began to experiment. Her tattoos pulsed and burned brightly in the dark.

Often times she'd blow into the flame, hoping to maybe try to breathe fire or something. Then Sasha would materialize the flames into a fiery object, her goal was to keep it a solid form, but still it continued to flicker and dance. All of her attempts to do something new made her head hurt, but she kept training herself. She tried to make the flame hotter, or change color, but they remained the same fiery orange and red, but sometimes she'd get a flick of purple, green, or yellow. When the color of her flames changed, even if was for just a second, so did her tattoos and eyes. They flickered from the amber and red to a very faint purple or green.

The fire calmed her, setting her nerves down and steadying her breath. Wanting to try something new, she moved the flames back where they belonged and got up off her bed. She stood with her feet firm on the ground, her fists clenched, her mind focused, her and breathing steady. Willing energy from her core and into her arms, she struck out, hoping that flames would blast from her closed hands. But they didn't. Sasha cursed under her breath and tried again, and again and again and again.

"Dammit!" She snapped a little too loudly, swiping her arm at the air, as she did so the flames from the candles gathered on her fingertips and slashed outwardly too before dissipating in the air. The room was dark now. Too many shadows loomed and, struck by a sudden fear, she quickly ran to the light switch and slammed it on. Nothing. No Blades ninjas or scary, shadow controlling women. Sasha sighed. "Shit…"

* * *

**Gotham City - Gotham Academy**

**August 26th 12:45 EDT**

"Sasha?" Something tugged on her shoulder. "Sasha, cute boy ten o'clock!" Another shove. "GODDAMMIT SASH, DON'T MAKE ME SING!"

Sasha snapped back to reality from staring…at places and things best unmentioned, more for her own sake. She turned a sharp glare at Ivan who sat next to her. He pouted. "See! I knew you didn't like my singing!" He cried, holding a hand to his chest in defense. Sasha rolled her eyes.

"Ivan, you admitted it yourself: dancers don't sing," She said with a scoff. **

"Madonna can sing!" Ivan protested, puffing out his bottom lip. Sasha shook her head.

"Madonna is a dinosaur." She said blandly. Ivan stuck his tongue out at her and continued poking at his Lo Mein with his chopsticks. Though, he paused to quickly flick the chopsticks over in a random direction.

The chopsticks trailed after a very attractive looking blond. "Like I said, cute boy, ten o'clock," He quipped and began eating again. Sasha stared at him. "Don't look at me like that! So what if my math is a little off?" She continued to stare. "What?!"

Sasha just huffed her breath and snatched his chopsticks out of his hands. She quickly ate a mouthful of his noodles and then started talking. "I'm not interested," She stated and tossed the chopsticks back at him. Ivan caught them, barely, and frowned.

"Don't like blonds? Didn't think so," He said and shook his head. His dark eyes scanned the area for another specimen. "Oh! How about tall, dark, and charming over there?" Ivan pointed at Dick Grayson who sat with his friends at his table. Sasha didn't say anything. Ivan took that as a sign of agreement and smiled from ear to ear. "See? He has a cute butt too!"

The dark-haired girl threatened to fling water at her dance partner who cowered in fear. "I told you, I'm not interested, Ivan."

He gave her a cheeky grin. "Then why'd you hesitate? Besides, I saw you starin' at him!" The boy nearly squealed in delight, and Sasha had to struggle to keep her body temperature down so she wouldn't blush. "You two should totally go on a date!"

"Ha!" Sasha barked with an opened mouthed smirk. "No. Not only would my mother go anal about me going out, let alone to see a guy, but I'm not interested."

"Bullshit."

"Not really."

The two friends sat in silence as Ivan continued to pout and eat, and Sasha flipped through the pages of a comic book. Half of her mind was on the action, art, and dialog written in the book, and the other was on personal things. She had been debating with herself for the past few days long and hard over whether she should ditch her mother and start that hero gig, or just let the knowledge of a killer go to waste. Not only did that drive her towards her former plan, but also the many glimpses and scene of muggings and gang activity that went on in the slums of Gotham. Blaire told her all about Crime Alley and how it was every girl for herself there. Sasha didn't know how she survived, with no parents according to Jason, all these years. Artemis didn't go without her stories either. Even with the vigilantes hard at work, there were still things fishy going on.

Sasha took a deep breath, closed her comic book, and slumped forward, resting her head on the table. She looked up at Ivan who was giving someone a nasty glare. He looked at her and she arched a brow questioningly as if to ask what was going on. "It's Bryant. He's comin' over here," He told her scornfully and she groaned. As if she didn't have enough problems already.

Bryant was your typical, high school, pretty-boy jackass. Sasha never liked him much. "Hello, Aleksandra," A smooth, seemingly charming voice cooed. Sasha tensed. She didn't like that name much, either. Slowly, she sat up and turned her head to glare at Bryant who smiled down at her.

"Do you need something?" The girl growled lowly, her eyes narrowed at the boy. He scowled.

"_No_, but I-"

"Then get out of my face, Wilson," Sasha spat and went back to resting her head on the table. She was not in the best mood to deal with this guy. Not only was she worrying about her death warrant, but the day before she unfortunately learned of the female bodily functions. Not fun.

"Jeez, those other girls were right about you." Bryant huffed. "You're rude, a smartass, and you think you're all that just because you ran away to Russia for six years and got away-"

"You're an eye sore," Sasha grumbled and stood up. She turned her body and looked up at Bryant, her face bored and a bit irritated. "For one, look who's talking. You're the one judging a girl by her looks and past, unfortunately, and that's not the right move now. I'm not in the best of moods and I don't want to deal with you, so scram." She poked him hard in the chest, making him stumble back just a little.

He eyed her and his little buddies decided to join the charade. They all tried to throw her death glares meaning to intimidate her, but she didn't back down. "Sash, don't! You know your mom will have a cow if you get into a fight!" Ivan warned her, but Sasha didn't care about her mother. In fact, a good ol' fight might cheer her up. That's when Sasha decided to smirk in amusement, and Bryant lost his temper. He threw the first punch, but he didn't expect for Sasha to dodge, let alone swing her leg all the while and slam her foot into his jaw, bringing him down to the concrete.

The courtyard went silent and all eyes on her. Sasha's smirk had grown into a full-scale smile from ear to ear. Bryant's followers looked at Sasha, this small, stocky, dancing, skateboarding rebel, and then at their esteemed leader, the guy who just got checked in the jaw and out for the count. Their brilliant idea was to go after her. In their lunge, the girl ducked down, tripped her skateboard on its wheels, and leapt on the board. She pushed her self away from the gang up and into the concrete clearing where she stood up and turned around to face her opponents.

A skirt didn't stop her from skateboarding and kicking some butt.

"Want me? Come and get me!" She called out to them, sticking her tongue out and throwing a peace sign before skating off. The teens stumbled to go after her as she rolled through the outside corridors of the school, swerving and gliding around and through crowds of nicely groomed teenagers. Sasha looked behind her and laughed before turning her head. She was heading crash course for a large amount of furniture some people were taking out of the building. Quickly she leapt off her board and over the object, leading swiftly and turning around to see one of the guys trying to roll over the table, but inevitably failed. Sasha stopped for a moment to let the furniture pass and then she zoomed down the hall again and she flew past the other guy that was chasing her.

Returning back to the courtyard, her skateboard slowed down and she jumped off and walked back over to her seat by across Ivan. He gave her a wide-eyed stare. She just shrugged and rested her head. "What?"

* * *

"A fight, Aleksandra! Why did you start a fight?" Rosalie shouted at her daughter who sat with her head on her fist in the office. The owner of Scatter Corp paced around the room, and the principle sat behind her desk with a narrow eyed glare directed at Sasha. The teen sighed and rolled her eyes.

"I didn't start it! Bryant Wilson did by trying to punch me!" She defended herself, though neither woman seemed convinced.

"Whether you started the fight or not does not matter, Ms. Volkov." The principle said, sounding very sophisticated and calm. "You should know very well after reading through the student handbook that Gotham Academy has a zero-tolerance policy on violence, and your little trip through the halls on your board will not go unnoticed either," Sasha scoffed and looked away, not really wanting to bother with these things. She was just having a bit of fun.

"Actions like this could very well lead to expulsion," The principle said and looked over at Rosalie who gave her a deadly glower. "However, since your mother has valuable resources, we will turn the other cheek and give you three days suspension."

Even the school didn't have a very just system. Not that Sasha really minded in this case, she was actually for once happy that her mother was so damned rich. Sasha pushed herself up from her chair and started towards the door. "Alright then, can I go now?" She asked impatiently.

"Yes, you may. Rosalie, it's been a pleasure, now get your daughter out of my office." The principle said rudely and Sasha shook her head before leaving. She would've slammed the door for good measure had her mother not been behind her. A boney hand snaked around her bicep and Rosalie dragged her daughter with her out of the school. She made a sure point to glare at Bryant who sat outside the office with a huge bruise on the side of his face.

"Consider yourself lucky, young lady. Not only did your principle not expel you, but I'm still allowing you to go to school, next time you won't be so lucky." Rosalie hissed to her daughter. Though, Sasha didn't take the threat. Instead, she turned it around.

"Yeah, I will be, actually," She said smugly. "You'll let it slide again and again because you know what I'll do; I'll go to press, maybe even run away again, or I might just become a hero without you knowing." Sasha knew what Rosalie was afraid of, and she would use that to her advantage. The woman kept walking, not responding to her daughter as they walked out the door and towards the black car waiting for them outside. Mother and daughter stepped into the care, both just as gruffly as the other and the car quickly sped off. No words were exchanged as they drove home, making it eerily silent.

Sasha was wondering what punishment Rosalie had in mind. More than likely she'd have her skateboard taken away as well as her freedom to skateboard _to_ school. Her privilege of going home by herself was revoked after her first incident. About ten minutes later they arrived home and Sasha's assumptions were right. Rosalie scornfully snatched her board away from her and sentenced her to her room for the night. Once she was in the safety of her room, Sasha pulled out her phone and saw that Ivan and Artemis texted her and she had a missed call from Dick. How funny.

**Hey! What did Momzilla take away this time? Let me guess, your life? Txt me back, girly! –Ivan**

**We really need to talk, you shouldn't have fought him! It was a major risk to take. –Artemis**

The girl sighed and sat down on her bed. She dialed in Dick's number and clicked the TV on, programming it to be the speaker system for the call. She didn't really feel like carrying the phone around. Dick answered on the second ring. "Hey, Sash! Are you okay? I saw what happened today," His voice was clear through the call. Sasha groaned and walked over to her cupboard.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just a bit peeved, that's all," She muttered, though her voice registered through the microphone. Dick chuckled. "What is it?"

"That was pretty cool – what you did, I mean."

"Heh," Sasha smiled. "Thanks, but Wilson just caught me in a bad mood,"

"Tell me about it,"

"You've been in a fight with Bryant?"

"Huh? Oh, no." He responded quickly. "I know someone else with the last name Wilson, and he's a bit of an ass too,"

"His relative?"

"Not exactly."

"Oh,"

There was a pause in the cellular convo and Sasha pulled out some shorts. She threw uniform off and pulled on the shorts, leaving her torso exposed with the exception of the black sports bra she wore. She hopped back onto her bed and turned the channel on her TV to the news. The subtitles were one since the sound system was busy processing the phone call. They were talking about the upcoming art walk in the art district of Gotham. Nothing too alarming. That was good. She pulled her computer in front of her and began surfing the web.

"So, what's your sentence?" Dick asked playfully.

Sasha laughed sarcastically. "Three days suspension and my skateboard is probably being burned as we speak," She said with a roll of her eyes, even though he couldn't see her. Her hands seemed to work themselves as she typed in Dick's name. Up came a little information on how he became Bruce Wayne's ward. Apparently, the kid was raised in a caravan known as Haley's Circus, his parents were among the esteemed Flying Grayson's, world-class acrobats and known for doing amazing tricks without safety nets. That all changed when he was about eight and in a freak accident one performance, the lines snapped on their act. Bruce Wayne was at that showing and took it upon himself to adopt Dick.

Sasha frowned. As if that story didn't just make her want to curl up and write poetry. She sighed, closed the link, and turned her attention back to her friend. "That sucks, guess that means you can't come to the art walk?" Dick asked, his voice hinting. She looked up at the screen in surprise.

"Is that an offer?" She asked, cocking her head to the side. Sasha was smiling then. Of course, Dick's offer was no different from Ivan's insistence that she go to the mall with him or something, nor was it any different from Ivan trying to set her up on a date. Though, she kept telling Ivan, and herself, that she had no time for guys. Mainly blamed her slight attractions on her teenage hormones.

Dick chuckled. "It would've been if your mom hadn't thrown you in jail,"

"Prison break!" She said singsong and closed her laptop.

"Shame, Volkov."

"Ha! Whatever," Sasha got up and grabbed her phone, ready to end this call. "I gotta go take a shower, see ya'."

"See ya! Hey, text me!"

"Will do!" She replied and ended the call. The volume for the news came back on and Sasha casually walked over to her bathroom. "Prison break, huh?" She was talking to herself and liked the idea she came up with. It probably wouldn't be the first time she snuck out of this house. Of course, she wouldn't remember it, but she was sure there was a certain report on her sneaking out at age seven. It wouldn't hurt to do it again. She checked the time real quick. It was 5:30, and she figured leaving around nighttime. Then there was the threat of Gotham's usual thugs.

Sasha smirked. Nothing a fire elemental couldn't help.

* * *

**Gotham City**

**August 26th 22:21 EDT **

Sasha's plan worked out quite smoothly. The only hard part was getting her board back and she had to wait until her mother was out for the count, than after that all she had to do was get past the large metal gate that was locked tight and built with a scary security system. Luckily there was a dead spot somewhere along the wall and she got past just finely. Now here she was, rolling through the streets of Gotham with the wind in her hair and a smile on her face. To everyone who saw her she was just another punk in a yellow tank top, her sleeveless, leather hoodie, dark shorts, combat boots, and a backpack designed with straps to carry her board. She didn't wear her contacts that concealed her amber eyes from the world and couldn't care less about anyone who stared.

The best part was the Scatter Bluetooth device she took from her mom. If she wanted to, she could pull up her stats and the GPS system through a holograph projection in front of her face that a small little add-on created. It was semi-transparent, so she could pay attention to the road as she pulled up a map of Gotham that showed all the places open at the time. Most of it was a bunch of bars, night clubs, and places restricted to the young fifteen-year-old. Nothing seemed interesting other than a hardware store that was open. With a sigh, she shut off the GPS and looked up at the skyline, as if she expected to see the outline of Artemis, Batman, or Robin trailing the rooftops. Nothing.

She decided to head to the hardware store, on the thought that she might need something to defend herself other than her brute strength. Sasha kicked off her board and sped down the streets to the hardware store. On her way there, she was sure she passed about three drug deals. Finally, she arrived at Jack's Hardware, a twenty-four-hour hardware store. After strapping in her skateboard she walked in and had a look around.

Sasha found a really nice heavy-duty, easy to remove, chain bike lock that she liked. She brought it to the counter and picked up a matt black pocket lighter on the way. Slapping both objects on the counter, she earned a very concerned look from the cashier. She smiled. "I'm paranoid about my bike, plus it's a good thing for a girl to carry around at night, if you know what I mean," ***

The old man huffed an attempt to laugh, but only managed a rusty reply, "Ha. Smart girl, And the lighter?" He said having dismissed any suspicion on her as he swiped both objects under a scanner.

"Burning some photos of my ex," She said with a scowl, rolling her eyes in a fake disgust. "Bastard decided to dump me for some tramp on the streets,"

This time, his hoarse laugh was even louder. "Well, it's his loss. That'll be eight twenty, missy."

Sasha gave him a ten. "I don't need the receipt, keep the change. Thanks!" She said quickly as she locked the chain around her waist and shoved the lighter in her pocket. He called out a goodbye to her as she walked out the door and detached her board. Before you could say 'have a nice day,' she was on the road again with the GPS pulled up. "Hmm, what to do, what to do…" As she hummed her way down the street, her screen began to glitch out. More than likely she hit a dead spot and, aggravated by the fading and twitching screen, she pulled over onto the sidewalk and leapt of her board to fumble with it.

"Dammit…" She hissed, shaking her head. Sasha ripped off the ear piece and shoved it into her pocket. "Rosalie will not be happy to know I broke her Bluetooth. Shit," She muttered to herself, kneeling down, she strapped her skateboard in and pulled out an MP3 player and some headphones. Putting those on, throwing her hood over her head and slinging her backpack over her shoulder, Sasha continued around the city on foot with dubstep blasting through her headphones. She turned into a nearby alleyway and glanced over at some men who were walking into a convenience store.

Leaning on the wall she continued to listen to her music and fumbled with her chain. She heard a muffled voice behind her but paid no mind to it until a hand tugged on her to turn around. Her hood fell and she looked up at a scary man with a gun, she recognized him from the group that went into the store. Sasha cocked an eyebrow and he pointed at his ears. Taking off her head phones and setting them around her neck, she smiled lightly. "Yes?"

"I said, put your hands in the air!" He barked at her with a New England accent. Sasha plastered on a slightly horrified face.

"Are you robbing me?" She asked in what sounded like disbelief.

"Yes!"

Her lips tugged upward slightly. "Ah," Quicker than he could register, she slid her chain off her waist, wrapped it around her hands, and punched him straight in the jaw. The action sent him falling back out of the alleyway and into the street. There were a few words in question from some unseen people before another man came running at her. Before anyone knew it, she and the man were hurdling into the street where she pinned him to the ground and made him stay. Rising from a crouching position she pulled her hood back over her head and looked over through the window at the men that stared at the small girl who had taken down both their men. They were in the middle of robbing the crusty old man behind the counter.

Sasha still held her smirk and the lead guy jerked his head after her, sending five other men after her. As soon as they entered the outside world, they dispersed to attack at all angles. Perfect. With two ganging up on her, she punched the one that got to her first, leapt, and kicked off his chest to kick down the second one. Building up momentum, she swept her leg under one man, lunging herself up to uppercut him in the jaw. She spun around, grabbing the arm of another man and twirled him around with her before she made her signature move of slamming her foot down on his neck.

Four down. One to go. The man came at her with a crowbar and swung at her but the crowbar came in contact with her forearm. She winced slightly at the pain and sucked it up to nail about three punches. The man was in the air when her tattoos began to glow a vibrant gold and the street lights burst and flames traveled down from them to her fist, empowering her strike and she made her final strike, sending the thug hurdling into the legs of their leader. Sasha finally got a good look at the guy. He looked like some sort of glorified drug dealer from the rich side of town. Little did she know that this well-dressed man had a grenade in his hand.****

The man looked down on his petty thug with false pity. "What a waste of money you were," He said spitefully and stepped over the unconscious man. His steely gaze moved to Sasha and held a slight amusement. "Well, kid, I don't know who think you are, but I'm afraid your little wanna-be-vigilante gig will end with this," The man flashed her a glimpse of the grenade and tossed it at her.

In a state of panic she ducked down rolled out of the way just as it hit the street. The force pushed her mid roll into the curb and she hit the concrete hard. Luckily no cars had come by during her tumble. Grunting and tending to the bleeding that came from the gash just above her hairline, she stood back up.

Sasha looked around for the man she was after and saw him climbing up a fire escape. She turned to glance at the old man who peered out his store door. "You okay if I go after him?"

"Uh-huh," He coughed and with that Sasha ran towards the fire escape. Gathering energy from the flames still around her hands, she slammed her fists downward, pumping the flames with kinetic energy to launch her up. Though, her breaking point was short, so she grabbed onto the fire escape and leapt up again. Her landing on the rooftop was a little less than rough going as she stumbled to get ahold of her footing again. She looked up at the man as she ran across the rooftop and her eyes narrowed.

"Hey!" She called and started after him but the stopped short when a black mass blurred in front of her and caught him ahead of her. Sasha's eyes widened and she stepped back. "Ooh, crap." An arm stretched around her shoulder as she tried to walk away and she was met by the smiling face of Bird Brain.

"Hey, what a surprise seeing you here," Robin said playfully and pushed her with him to go meet up with his mentor. Though, with her heels to the floor, he had to struggle with her, all the while keep a smile on his face. That's it. Sasha was in for a world of trouble.

* * *

"You broke three ribs of one man, broke another's collarbone, and severely burned someone. Not only did you do that, but you left the thugs unbound and let three escape." Batman barked at her, and Sasha did everything she could not to make eye contact with him. She looked down at the wet concrete and allowed her hood to cover the top of her peripheral vision. She, Batman, and Robin were in a dark alleyway with both of them cornering her against the brick wall. Out of nervousness, Sasha chewed on her lip. "You were reckless and out of line, Sasha, and you won't be doing it again." He told her sternly.

Sasha looked up and cocked her head to the side. "And if I do?" She questioned, not letting her voice waver. "You and Rosalie both are just seriously PMSing lately," Batman's eyes narrowed at her and Robin snickered to the side. "Look, I'm sorry if I don't exactly meet your expectations, but I'm just starting out so cut me some slack. More than likely, I will be doing this again and you, Robin, Artemis or anyone else are more than welcome to give me a few pointers, other than that, stay out of my business,"

Turning her back on the Dynamic Duo, she began to walk away. Her head was killing her. Though, her night with the Bats wasn't over. She realized this when Robin tugged on her shoulder just enough to slow her down so he could step in front of her. Sasha scowled. "What?"

"You're bleeding," He stated simply. A little dumbfounded, Sasha remembered her tumble across the street and lifted a hand to touch the gash on her skull. Though, Robin beat her to it with a cloth dampened with Neosporin. She grimaced at the fact she needed help from him. He caught her pained face and smirked.

"Don't look at me like that, Bird Brain." She growled at him, though couldn't help the keeping smile on her own face. Sasha ignored the stinging of medical chemicals mixing into her open wound.

Robin chuckled. "We've been missing you at the Cave," He told her.

"So I've heard,"

"Been talking to Artemis?"

"We keep in touch."

"Am I going to be seeing more of you out on the streets?"

Sasha shrugged. "Maybe."

"Next time wear a mask," Robin said as he finished up cleaning her wound. Sasha stuck her tongue out at him. "They come in handy."

She rolled her eyes. "I don't have anyone to protect,"

"I'm not worried about other people, Sash,"

Sasha looked him in the eyes – err, well mask, for a little while before biting her lip. "I gotta go. See ya' around, Bird Brain," She said quickly and walked around him. She unstrapped her skateboard, rolling it on the ground, hopped on, and sped back home. All the while, the girl was trying to clear her mind of all the thoughts running through her head about the Boy Wonder.

* * *

*- Fluoroantimonic acid is one of the most acidic substances on earth. It can dissolve through near anything and emits a deadly gas that can do just about the same. Fluoroantimonic acid is best contained in a wax container. Obviously I just got out of chem.

**- Don't like this? This is a bit of an inside joke at my school because most of our dance majors can't sing. Sorry if you see any different! I don't mean to offend!

***- The chain lock she gets is a reference to Premium Rush. It's these huge ass chain locks the bike messengers carry around and I grew to like them.

****- I'm still debating on whether or not this guy is one of Black Mask's lackeys or what, either way this should be a hint at what kind of trouble Sasha gets herself into later! Ha!

**A/N:** Ah, hello there! I don't usually meet you guys down here unless it's one of my little notes as displayed above this text, but this is a special occasion! Upon earning over 1,000 views, I decided to make a little short for you guys. It's not canon, nor official in **"From the Ashes"** or YJ, or anything for that matter, and obviously it won't be the best of my work. It's just a little present I gift wrapped for you guys to show that I love ya'll. Hope you guys like it! (The minions worked very hard on it. I know they can be a bit special, but they turn up in the long run, right?)

Enjoy!

* * *

**Slumber Party**

**Part One: Attack of the Terrible Trio!**

On a very stormy night in Happy Harbor, the teens of the Young Justice Team decide to have a slumber party. It's definitely not the usual on the schedule for the young heroes, but they couldn't complain. Wally was a little more than happy to share a night with his girlfriend, Artemis, who was glad to hang out with her friends, and Kaldur found the activity perfect for team bonding and was glad that his friends were relaxed and at peace for the night. It was nothing out of the usual for Zatanna, Garfield, Conner, and Megan other than the extra supplement of teens in the Cave for which Megan was overjoyed. Robin was cool with anything and Sasha…

"Don't tell me we're going to be doing those stupid 'spin the bottle' or 'truth or dare' games, are we?" The coal-haired girl growled lowly, her amber eyes glinting with a dangerous spark.

Wally pouted. "That's the fun in slumber parties, though!"

"Then, I'm not going!" Sasha snarled her fury.

Wallowing in his failure to lure the newest member of the team into a hormonal death trap, the ginger curled up in a corner. Sasha was fuming on the other side of the room, her arms crossed, and her back turned on him. Though, Robin made the smart move of draping his arm around her shoulder and smiling cheekily. "Afraid of a little game of truth or dare, Sash? What, are you one of those people who always pick truth when they play?" He pestered. Sasha would've punched him if he weren't who he was. Instead, the girl rolled her eyes in disgust.

"I'm not afraid." She snapped quickly.

Garfield popped out of nowhere with a devilish grin. "I know! She's scared of the ghost stories that we tell. Typical of a little girl like her," He teased, keeping a malicious tone. Sasha leered at the boy and muttered something about him having to do homework or something. Encouraged by the cornering of the small, bi-racial Russian Wally ran out of his mopping and up to the girl with a grin that could rival the Joker's.

"Just look at her! So small and frail, such innocence shouldn't be ruined by a slumber party!" He said dramatically with a fake sob. Green eyes glanced over at her and he sniffled just for effect. Sasha growled. He was really asking for it.

"Dammit, West. I will fucking maul you," Sasha warned through clenched teeth.

Wally swatted at her with a pout. "Potty mouth!" He stuck his nose in the air, crossed his arms, and began a cheap imitation of her mother. "Aleksandra Volkov! I will not tolerate those words on me, young lady!"

Just to tick her off even more, he gave her the most ridiculous face he could manage.

"Oh! That is it!" She snarled and lunged after him. Luckily Robin and Garfield caught her and, despite her enhanced strength, she let herself give into the two. Sasha gave the speedster the nastiest glare she could manage and he could practically see the her plans for his death projected in those amber orbs. Brushing off the Boy Wonder and changeling, she dusted herself off and placed her hands on her hips. "Fine. I'll stay," The girl submitted.

"Yay!" From afar, Megan had heard and cheered as she ran over to Sasha to give her a tight hug. "It's been a while since you've stayed over at the Cave! It should be fun!" She said with a bright smile as she released the elemental.

Crossing her arms, Sasha rolled her eyes and glanced over at the Terrible Trio, Robin, Wally, and Gar, who were huddled together, probably planning her overnight demise. "Yeah. _Fun_."

* * *

**A/N:** Yes! Indeed it is only the first part! Haha. So the next time I get one thousand views or something special, I'll post the next part! Thanks for reading and don't forget to review, favorite, or follow! Thanks!

**-REVIEW! (Don't forget to post your predictions for the future of FtA!)**


	9. Chapter Eight

**From the Ashes**

**Author's Notes: **Okay! Short chapter! I know that's not the best way to update after skipping out on an update, but there's a reason for the shortness of this chapter – I swear! As usual, thank you for the reviews and keep em' coming. Also, don't forget to favorite and follow! A little about Sasha's profession as a vigilante – she'll start out in a street-fighter-like sense and eventually get better, I promise. In fact, her costume will be very street-fighter-like, with the exception of several lighters and matches. Woohoo, pyros!

I changed the title of **I Burn** into** From the Ashes** (FtA) because I felt that it would fit the story just a little better. I think I'm done with all my modifications of the technical stuff in the story. So, onto the chapter! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **I do ******NOT** own**Young Justice**, **DC **or any other reference I make in ******From the Ashes**. I just own the plot and my OCs.

**Chapter Eight**

**Gotham City – Himura Estate**

**September 8th 09:44 EDT**

Since that night out in Gotham, Sasha was planning her big confrontation with her mother. That night was the event that made up her mind. She was going to fight for the greater good, and she didn't care whether or not Rosalie approved. It started when Sasha woke up from a restless slumber. She sat in her bed, legs crossed, and her breathing steady as she planned out how today would go. Sure, she was going to be nicer, more cooperative, and calm, but she still wouldn't make herself look weak. Broken, cracked, and whipped were words that she didn't want to describe herself as on this day. Sasha would meet her mother with determination, a calm demeanor, and as a reasonable young woman who wanted to live her own life as she chose.

Of course, it wouldn't go completely as planned.

After thinking through her entire day, Sasha leaped out of bed and took quick strides to her closet. She pulled out her favorite, red, zip-up hoodie, a black tank top, and some skinny jeans. Overnight, she had slept in just her underwear, so all she had to do was pull on the clothes and retreat to her bathroom where she combed out her hair, messed it up, slipped on her various black and gold bracelets, put on her gold ear-cuff that chained around to a black earing piece on her left ear, and brushed her teeth. She made her bed, did a quick check on the news, and started down stairs for breakfast. The young girl had her usual serving of three different citrus fruits, two strawberries, and some hot tea. She found that drinking hot beverages was much more comfortable than drinking ice water.

Eventually, her mother joined her downstairs and had a good-looking meal of toast and Nutella spread. Such a breakfast proved to be too bland to satisfy Sasha's tastes, so she would insist on eating strong fruits or noodles with Sriracha in it in the morning. Today, Rosalie Himura was wearing long, black slacks and a loose, yet somehow form-fitting, semi-transparent, white shirt. The only thing that concealed her black bra was the white slip she wore underneath her clothes. Her long, thin black hair was put up delicately in gold chopsticks and her dark eyes held a smoky shadow, accented by black eyeliner with the cat-eye effect. Sasha gave her a mock salute as she turned to face her daughter across the counter.

Rosalie smirked. "You seem to be in a good mood today," She said warmly with a tight quirk of her lips. Sasha snorted.

"Sorta," She shrugged. "What are we doing today?"

Her mother gave her a concerned and curious look. It wasn't usual for Sasha to be interested in doing anything with her mother. "I don't have much planned except for a hair appointment later this afternoon," She added quickly, "You can come, I guess – to get your hair done,"

Sasha blinked for a moment and turned her attention to her hair. "Does my hair need to be done?" She questioned, genuinely curious about the health of her hair, after all, she did take great pride in it. It was one of the things on her body that she cared about what it looked like. Now that Rosalie drew attention to the many flaws on her hair, she began to notice the split ends and how her layers had grown too long to make her hair look flat. The girl pouted. "Guess I do,"

"The change in humidity from Russia to Gotham must've messed with your hair, or something of that matter," Rosalie spoke as she fiddled with her daughter's hair. Sasha swatted her hands away and frowned.

"Mom. Please don't touch my hair," She grumbled, crossed her arms and staring down her mother with a pout. Her mother just sighed and stopped struggling with her. Satisfied, Sasha continued eating her orange in that special way where she would open up the slices and pick out each little pod of juice. Camouflaged eyes wondered about the room looking for something interesting to talk about. "So, how was it that Scatter Corp came to America again?"

Rosalie looked over at her daughter, once again a look of bewilderment riddled her perfect face. Despite her strange looks, she answered. "Well, Scatter started in Japan as you know by the Himura House, our ancestors go way back to the Samurai and fabled warriors of ancient Japan. My great-grandfather started Scatter Corp by designing guns and weapons for the law enforcement, and back when we had one, the army. Around the time my father came to be the head of the house, Scatter was already designing prototypes for advanced technologies that we would put into our new hybrid weapons and eventually branched off that technology into a different department for production.

"My father moved the company over into Europe and started developing in England where he met my mother. I was conceived and born in London, England, but because of family feuds, we moved back to Japan and left my mother where she belonged. By default, I was to be the next head of the house, so I was taught and raised in Japan to take up head of the company and around age twenty three I moved back to England and met your father, Lev was full blood Russian and was in England for God knows what kind of business he does in Russia, I thought I fell in love and was pregnant with your brother about a month after dating your father. Four years later, I inherited Scatter Corp, I was pregnant with you, and I wanted to go to New York to start an American branch of Scatter.

Your father not only wasn't able to come, but he was called back to Russia and left with a divorce sheet as a goodbye. I didn't hesitate to sign it, so I did that, got my stuff together and left for America. I became a citizen, started the American databases, and soon had you," Rosalie finished.

Sasha heard a shorter version of the story once while Rosalie had her business friends over for some sort of meeting. Though, there were details in her story that could've gone unmentioned, such as the fact that Rosalie was _conceived_ in London, England. The last thing she wanted to know about was her grandfather and grandmother doing the nasty in Buckingham Palace, even if the exact details were unclear. Suppressing a choppy shudder, Sasha got over her disturbing thoughts and took a hasty sip of her tea.

Truth be told, she was actually quite happy to hear about her own origins and her past. It was reassuring that she lived a somewhat normal life up until about six years ago when she supposedly ran off to Russia to do God knows what.

"Whatever happened to Andrii?" The question slipped out of her mouth before she could register it in her mind. She was always curious about the men of her family, since Rosalie spoke very little of them and when she did it usual involved many vulgar terms. Sasha's mother eyed her for a while before sighing.

"When he was about eight, your father came to New York to retrieve you two so he could raise you. I didn't allow that, but Andrii wanted to leave. I let him and also told him he was no longer my son." Rosalie explained very casually. Sasha stared at her with disbelief. What kind of woman would disown her child because he wanted to live his life? It made her rethink her decision. What if Rosalie disowned her? Did she really care if that happened? "The boy came back about six years later and that's when you went with him." The woman continued, adding with a shake of her head and a wave of her hand, "You already knew that, though."

Sasha nodded to confirm her statement. "Yup," She said a bit absently. "Just, sorta forgot, I guess," She shrugged sheepishly and got up from her seat. She crossed around the bar and to the sink with her plate in hand and she set the dishes in the porcelain basin. "What time's the appointment?"

"We'll be leaving around eleven forty, okay?"

Sasha nodded and left towards the living room. She didn't go into the room very often, and each time she did, she noticed something new. This time it was the Japanese-style painting of three different foxes. One on the left had three tails, and was stylized to be white, the second on the right also had three tails was black, and the one in the center was colored crimson, white, and black with nine tails. The nine-tailed fox shone brilliantly out of the three and seemed to be of a higher being than the others. Their setting was some sort of cloud. Possibly Heaven or something of that matter. Around them were several swirling balls of gold and crimson, appearing to be fire-like.

"What are those foxes?" Sasha asked her mother as she entered the room with her. Rosalie's sharp eyes looked up at the beings and she cocked her head to the side slightly.

"Kitsune," She answered simply and Sasha looked over at her with a questioning expression. "They are divine fox beings of Japanese mythology. Kitsune are very trickster like and they like to transform into human form to do their binding on the human plane. Even though they are known for being tricksters, they are seen as guardians, lovers, and messengers of the gods. The older and wiser they are, the more tails they have until they have nine tails." Rosalie explained and she sat on the couch, folding her legs next to her and she put on her glasses as she reached out for her book on the coffee table.

Sasha continued to stare. "What do they do?" She asked, intrigued by the divine beings. She's always had a thing for foxes anyway.

"Oh, this and that, something about Foxfire; some sort of power they have. I didn't listen to the entire story my father told me," Rosalie said, returning back to her snobbish attitude as she delved into her book. Sasha sighed and sat down, running a hand through her ebony locks.

Well, her mother seemed to be in a good mood. Sasha's hope was that she'd stay this way until dinner. That's when she planned to give the big news. She knew that no matter what, Rosalie wouldn't be fine with this. In fact, she'd have a cow. That was a risk Sasha would have to take though, and if her mother chained her to a post in her room, then she'd still get out. Nothing was stopping her this time.

Uninterested eyes cast over to the small collection of pictures on the coffee table. Those were the only pictures of her family that Rosalie had. There was one of herself and Rosalie when she was about eight years old. Young Sasha looked as though she was forcing on a small smile, decked down in black slacks and a red top, and Rosalie had a tight grimace with a slightly amused look in her dark eyes. There was another of when Sasha was considerably younger, probably three or four, and she was on the shoulders of a young boy with messy, ashy blond hair. He was tail already for a nine year-old. That was Andrii Volkov. It was the only picture that gave her the slight idea what her brother looked like.

Sasha knew she declared that she didn't want anything to do with her past, but it felt like it was chasing her even though she didn't know a single thing about it. For example, since when did she have beef with the leader of some foreign group dedicated to the evil doings in this world?

Her gut twisted. That was a nice thought to bring into her head. Sasha deadpanned. _Great. Now I'm gonna be thinking about Wilt and her psycho impulse to kill me. _The last thing she wanted to be thinking about was Wilt and the Blades. Artemis hasn't come up with any more information on them other than what she gave her on the flash , the Blades are a small group assembled by about fifty members, each specially trained and deadly. Though, there weren't any recordings of any attacks made by the Blades until about two years ago and they started going active on small towns and small targets in the Western Hemisphere. According to Batman's intel, the Blades made an attack on the League of Shadows recently. A lethal attack.

_Maybe that's why they're after you. Maybe you really were a Shadow. _A haunting voice told her, causing the girl to shudder and she had to suppress her movements so she wouldn't draw Rosalie's attention. Now was not the time to look back to those fears.

Sasha took in a deep, stimulating breath and closed her eyes, attempting to calm herself and clear her mind. _One problem at a time, Volkov._

* * *

**Gotham City**

**September 8th 13:20 EDT**

"Give her a nice clean up, and do something about those eyebrows, would you?" Rosalie called over her shoulder as she walked over to her stylist, sashaying her hips in a small rhythm as she did so. Sasha was being pulled away to another part of the building by several women who oohed and awed about how adorable she was. She wasn't oblivious to the fact that her short, stocky appearance was a bit…cute, but it still aggravated her. After all, no one really knew that behind all the clothing was a body trained to fight. To be called cute was a bit annoying. It was better than earning a cat call from one of the guys from school, though.

"Oh, look at her!"

"Isn't she just darling!"

"You think Miss Himura put her through gymnastics? Her hips are so well developed!"

"I don't know, but did you hear that she takes up dance at school?"

Sasha didn't even want to begin questioning how they knew that. In fact, she was more focusing on why the women didn't ask her the questions? After all, she was probably the best source. A thorough washing of her hair involved hushed chit-chat and the scents of many different oils, shampoos, conditioners, and scrubs. During the process, one of the women took the liberty of doing her eyebrows while commenting how pretty her eyes were. The whole time, Sasha was praying the woman wouldn't notice the fine circle around her pupil that was usually the dead giveaway that she was wearing contacts. Under the bright light, her brown contacts blended into the gold behind them and created a hazel-like shade in her eyes.

"Any boys?" A woman - Claudia was her name - asked as she snipped away at the split ends of her ebony locks. The question threw Sasha off guard and her eyes widened, and she her head to look at the woman with a, "you crazy?" look. At least, she tried too until Claudia pushed her head back. "Careful! If you turn your head, you'll end up with a crooked haircut. If I remember correctly, you hated to have your hair not perfect. When you first came to my shop, you wouldn't let me touch your hair at all."

"Guess that's one thing she inherited from Rosalie," A younger woman said as she passed by and Claudia's assistant, a young black woman, looked her up and down with a sly smile.

"Mmm-hmmm. At least it ain't her bitchy ass attitude." She muttered and Sasha stifled a snort. Claudia spat and elbowed her.

"That's my best customer you're talking about, Julia!" Claudia hissed and shooed her away. "Do something useful with yourself before you get yourself fired, alright?"

While this was happening, Sasha was attempting to cancel out the noise of her stifled laughter. It wasn't very often did she hear about Rosalie's terrible, stuck up attitude from people other than herself. It was a nice feeling knowing she wasn't the only one complaining. She relaxed and closed her eyes as the rest of her appointment continued, listening to the chatter about the size of a woman's breasts and/or what was the best way to avoid getting their boyfriend in a frizz over a breakup. Sasha's personal impute was to tell those men to buy a spine.

That's when the question was mentioned once again. "Hey, C, she never answered yo' question, huh?" Julia asked, looking over her shoulder and sticking her tongue out at Sasha. Sasha returned the gesture before Claudia could pester her more about boys.

"That's right!" Claudia said, slapping her palm on her forehead and giving Sasha a sassy look. "Missy, you can't keep dodging my questions like that. I haven't seen you in six years, you think you can let me answer a question or two while your mother isn't in my case?"

Sasha tried to sink in her seat to avoid the question, but Claudia pulled her right back up. "Well, missy?" Claudia pressed, giving the girl a tight tug on her hair as she continued to even out her bangs while trying to keep the layers perfect.

"I really don't…" Sasha began and trailed off for Julia to take up the conversation.

"Pfft, that's a load of bull! I know your momma ain't too keen on boys, but you're a teen! You gotta like someone!" Julia said, keeping her voice low as she looked over across the building where Rosalie was getting more than just a haircut. "Even Rosalie liked a guy or two once, otherwise you wouldn't of happen. Unless…"

Sasha quickly cut her off before Julia could voice her thoughts. She had enough of terrible mental images in her head for one day, and it was only noon. "I really don't like anyone, besides it's all just hormones," She said dismissively with a small shrug, nothing to sudden that would screw up her haircut.

"Mmm-hmm. How do you know it's not _the one_?" Julia taunted with a smack of her jaw as she batted her eyelashes in a mocking away. Sasha rolled her eyes.

"Please. I'm fifteen years old." She scowled. Truly, she didn't believe in the whole true love gig. The world was full of people and one person couldn't have been made special just for you. Whatever Maker there was, obviously had way too much time on his or her hands to be doing stuff like that. Plus, she didn't need to be thinking about that.

No. She had better things to think about. Much better things.

* * *

"Ah! You look so lovely!" Claudia cried, proud of the work she had done to Sasha's hair. Rosalie stood behind Sasha with a small, approving smile. Claudia was right. Her hair was lovely.

Looking at herself now made her realize that her hair just wasn't black, but was probably one of the darkest shades of sleek ebony. Against her plan skin, it looked like the blackest black. Her hair still had its messy due, however it felt lighter, and cleaner. Even when absent of split ends and tangles, it had that natural spike and her bangs swept over her eyes, just barely covering her left eye. Claudia kept nit picking about a few rebel hairs on the top of her head that dare stick up, however Sasha kind of liked the cowlick. It was…cute.

Sasha mentally shivered. Again, she didn't like using that word on herself.

"It would look even lovelier with red lipstick." Rosalie pointed out, hinting at Claudia with a small death glare. However, Sasha came to the woman's rescue.

"I don't need any make-up, mom," She said with a shake of her head. That's when she noticed the two braids on the right side of her face that peeked out of the rest of her thick hair to accent her well-framed face. Curious, she ran her hand through her hair and found that there were several small, hidden braids of ebony among her mane. Sasha thought it was a unique touch. "I didn't even notice the braids, Claudia, that's really cool,"

"I figured you would like them, sweetheart." Claudia said chastely, nodding her head vigorously.

Rosalie pursed her lips before shooing Sasha out of her chair. "Well, that's all we need, Claudia. Thank you very much, Sasha and I need to go shopping now." She said quickly, giving Claudia brief grins as she shifted through her purse for her credit card case.

"Shopping?" Sasha tilted her head at the word. This was the most that Rosalie had ever brought her daughter out. However, she wasn't too thrilled about shopping.

"You'll need something…" Rosalie eyed her outfit for a while, a look of disgust vaguely hidden on her face. "nicer to wear to the dinner party tonight," She finished and gave Claudia cash since she couldn't find her credit card case. The two began to walk out the door.

Sasha blinked for a little while before replying. Dinner party? "I wasn't aware of a dinner party," She said as they walked out the door. "Thanks Claudia!" She threw quickly over her shoulder as the door closed behind them. The two stepped into the back of a sleek luxury car. A setting of white wine was already laid out for Rosalie.

The head of Scatter Corp took a quick drink and said, "I didn't tell you? That's why we're going out today. There's going to be a huge press conference there too,"

This was definitely going to turn her plans for the worse. Was she really gonna have to risk giving away the fact that Sasha wanted to be some masked vigilante? "Who's going to be there? How long is it gonna last?" The questions rolled off her tongue before she could think. Rosalie looked a bit surprised by the inquisitions.

"Several people, dear. The commissioner, probably several of your peers – I don't know, Aleksandra. Why?" Rosalie answered curtly, and Sasha could see that she was getting irritated. Though, she just stared her down. Her mother had yet to answer he second and last question. "It will probably end after midnight, depending on who's there,"

Sasha slumped in her seat. This was not good. Depending on how late it would be, her plans would surely fall for the worst. That was the last thing Sasha wanted on this day. No wonder Rosalie was being so nice and in such a good moon. She probably had the same plan Sasha did. Keep the victim happy and give the news later. Well played, Rosalie.

"Don't think you can back out of it, Aleksandra; I already bought your dress last night," Rosalie added snobbishly, turning her nose up. Sasha rolled her eyes and gruffly planted her head on her fist. _Great. Just great._

* * *

**Gotham City – Wayne Manor**

**September 8th 16:27 EDT**

Dick walked into the living room and threw a towel at Jason, who was currently texting a certain childhood friend while lounging on the couch. The eldest of the two stood over him with a devilish grin as he watched Jase throw the towel off him. Jason glared at him older counterpart. "Dammit, Grayson, what is it now?" He growled and Dick pulled off his towel from around his shoulders.

"Who ya' texting?" He inquired nosily, even though he already knew who it was, and flopped over onto the couch. He reached for Jason's phone, but he dodged the assault. "Is it a girl?" Dick poked his adoptive brother in the arm and dodged the swing that came after him with a cackle.

"It's none of your business, Dick." Jason muttered and shrank away. Dick just chuckled and looked over to see who was peering at the screen silently over Jason's shoulder.

"You're texting Blaire?" Bruce grumbled and eyed Jason who flinched ever so lightly and turned around quick to confirm who had spoken.

"So it _is_ a girl!" Dick snickered and ducked a flying pillow.

Bruce rolled his eyes at the boys. "What'd she say about your invite to the event tonight?"

Jason sighed and put his phone up. "She's pissed because she has to buy a dress, but she'll come," He said as he got up and picked up the towel.

"She doesn't have to wear a dress," Bruce said matter-of-factly and Jason arched a brow.

"Does that mean I don't have to wear a tux?"

"Given that you can afford one – yes, you have to wear the tux, Jason."

Jason groaned and began to walk up the stairs wear he passed Alfred, who stopped him briefly. "Will Miss Grey need transportation?" The butler asked briskly.

He shrugged. "Probably," He said and added lightly, "And, Bruce, you know her profession; I'm pretty sure she has no problem affording a dress."*

"Shower."

"On it!"

Jason disappeared up the stairs, leaving Dick, who was hanging upside-down off the couch, and Bruce alone. Mentor and student stared at each other for a while before the latter got off the couch and started towards his room. "Ya' know, I'm pretty sure Blaire isn't the only one pissed about having to wear a dress," Dick muttered with a smirk. Bruce didn't need clarification on who he was talking about.

"Have you heard anything from Artemis about Sasha's plans?" Bruce asked as he fastened his tie.

"All she knows is that Sash's got some plans to kick off her new late-night job." The black-haired boy said and looked over at his mentor with a side glance. "Have you found out anything new about Wilt and the Blades?"

"No. Not much, and let's just hope Sasha doesn't kick off tonight – she may not know it, but staying with Rosalie is probably the best form of protection she has. Being so publically known gives her somewhat of an armor; but if she ends up leaving Rosalie Himura, she could be an easier target." Bruce explained and ran a hand over his face. "Remind me to try to talk to her the next time she sneaks out."

Dick shrugged. "Okay," He said and pulled on his blazer. The only thing missing from his suit was a tie – something he couldn't find at the moment.

"Your tie, Master Dick?" Alfred offered, having spotted the article of clothing among the couch. Dick gave the man a sincere thanks and continued to put on the tie. It was a loose knot, but got the job done. For now. Alfred turned to face Bruce and coughed. "Maybe Miss Volkov is well on her own? After all, she did survive those first few nights without any major injuries."

"That was going up against rivaled thugs – Wilt is a whole different story; she's fast, lethal, and has an attack range of anything visual – or, so we know so far," Bruce said gruffly and crossed his arms. "I'm surprised Sasha is still alive, to be honest."

Dick stood silent, his mind wandering off into space. He was worried about Sasha, but he didn't underestimate her. He couldn't blame her really – for wanting to leave Rosalie, but Bruce was right. Sasha's publicity was her armor, for now. He looked over at Bruce. The party started at five, but Bruce was only staying until a little before sundown so he could go out patrolling – no Robin's included. Since Artemis couldn't make it to the event, Dick would have to keep an eye on Sasha and, well, Jason had his childhood friend to keep entertained. He just hoped Sasha wouldn't decide to get into a fight with the press – now, that would look perfect on the headlines.

* * *

*- Blaire's profession will be revealed in the little background slide-off I'll be making about her. I'll also probably be making one for Sasha's history, just little bits of it, and, when the time comes, for another mystery character! Hint-hint!

**-REVIEW! **(Also, I'd still like to hea/read your predictions about FtA!)


	10. Chapter Nine

**From the Ashes**

**Author's Note: **Oh my god! I'm so sorry I haven't been updating! School is seriously kicking my ass! Ah, but I feel great that I'm updating finally. A lot happens in this chapter. Not only does the plot advance, but we get some saucy information on what's going on exactly. Will some of our questions be answered? Will Sasha finally get what she wants? Find out! Oh, guess what I recently realized? If you rearrange the letters in Ashes and replace the E with an A, you get Sasha. What are the odds? Also, remember to review! I really do like reading the reviews and I'd love to start a conversation with you guys. It's fun! Feel free to favorite and follow as well! Enjoy!

**Disclaimer:**

**Chapter Nine**

**Gotham City – Crime Alley**

**September 8th 17:15 EDT**

Blaire Grey shifted uncomfortably in her dress and groaned. Of course, it was one of the dresses she would manage to wear. Not that she would actually show on the outside that she hated it – well, actually, she liked the dress, just not on her. The dress was a simple and girly bubble-like, white dress with elegant black lacing along the fluffy hem and a black bow around her waist and tied at the center of her back. However, she didn't go without her punkish charms; adding in her slightly torn converse, ripped up, black gloves, and simple black choker. Her dark brown roots had grown and blended into the white dye she had put into her hair – an effect she had looked for since it seemed to be her favorite.

Quickly, the young girl walked over to her desk and shut down her computer just in case any snoops were to try an invade her private work while she was gone and began down the spiral staircase of her run-down church of a home. Alex Grey – the woman who had raised her to be who she was – lived there her entire life, and Blaire was going to continue to live there as well. The church was stone-architecture, courtesy of the usual design on Gotham's buildings, with large, stone pillars, and rich wood seats, once graced by velvet cushions and the glowing light of beautiful colors projected by the stain glass windows. Those windows were now shattered, those seats were now torn, that rich wood was rotted, and those large pillars were crumbling.

Yet, it felt like home. It always did ever since Blaire was seven and she began living under Alex's wing – being trained to be the next Crime Alley information broker, and damn was she trained by the best. Her skills in hacking, detective work – it rivaled the famous Batman and the Question. Gliding her hand over split wood, she passed down the aisle and through the dark doors. She closed both doors soundly and secured the chain around the handles before locking the padlock. The buzzing of her phone kept her at a halt as she struggled through the ruffles of her damned dress to find the pockets that came with it.

Finally, she found her phone. "You're here." She said into the speaker without question – she already knew who it was.

"Yup," Jason popped the 'p.' "You coming?"

"Yeah," Blaire replied as she continued down the stone steps of her beloved church. "Have any trouble finding the place?"

There was a silence and Blaire's lips quirked just slightly. "I-I spent most of my childhood at that chapel; you think I would forget?" He answered hastily.

"You never were the best at directions, Jay." She laughed lightly, her rusty, hazy voice slurring ever so lightly.

"Bruce needed to talk to you before the party," Jason said, changing the subject. Though, Blaire didn't respond until she finally heard that one line she'd grown up hearing from her best friend.

Blaire rolled her eyes and scowled as she slipped through the wire fence that divided her little haven from the rest of Crime Alley, careful not to get her new dress caught in the prickly wiring. "Of course, he does. The man can't trust me for a single second, even after I agreed to stop handing out important information to the thugs. Remind him that the only thing that's keeping me from selling him out – literally – is the fact that your life is a stake as well, Jay." She said sharply.

There was a pause. "There's no comment from the all mighty Bat." He finally said and Blaire laughed before catching sight of their luxury car.

"I see you," She said as she approached and the window rolled down to reveal the smirking face of none other than Jason Todd.

"I see you, too, Blaire," He said and got out, keeping the door open for her to slide in before him. She smiled coyly.

"Such a gentleman," Blaire said mockingly and slid into the car.

"Good evening, Miss Grey!" Alfred called over his shoulder from the driver's seat. She smiled and waved at the man through the rear-view mirror. Blaire always liked Alfred Pennyworth, a trusting man that she enjoyed to chat with now and then when she was invited over to the Wayne Manor.

"Hi, Alfred!" She said briskly and looked over to her left at Dick Grayson, and then in front of her where she glared at Bruce Wayne. "Dick, Bruce." She greeted tightly.

Dick smirked. "Hey Blaire," He said. Blaire didn't hate the guy. Actually, she was on really good terms with him, for now. She just couldn't stand how damned cocky he could be.

"You haven't been abiding to our entire deal, Blaire," Bruce said as Jason got back in and shut the door. Blaire smirked. She was full aware of the deal they had. She would remain under protection of the Dark Knight so long as she didn't give any crucial information to thugs, she allowed the Dark Knight full access to her computer system, and that she wouldn't sell out the names of the Bat Family. That agreement also allowed her to not get turned in, and she would still be allowed to see Jason on a regular basis.

However, lately, Blaire had bulked up the security system over her private work place. With a sigh, she pulled out a flash drive from her pocket. "I've gotten in risk of people wanting to find me, so I've had to keep a tighter lock on my system. Here's some encryptions to allow you in, coded by yours truly." She said and handed him the USB.

"Thanks," Bruce said and gave the USB to Alfred who kept it under wraps. "How has your day been?"

Oh, so now he wants to talk like normal people?

"Pretty good, I guess. Hope you like the dress, it cost me seventy bucks." The petite girl said blandly and leaned against Jason. "Not only that, but my messenger decided to get a new gig without telling me, so I had to make the information drop today and, well, it's not fun having to be called a loose end. Needless to say, running with a package in one hand, a dress in the other, half a mile, is very exhausting."

Ah, sarcasm. It was a common tool for the informant. Not quite finished with her conversation, Blaire closed her eyes, hoping to get a little bit of rest while she had Jason's shoulder as a pillow. She could practically feel Dick mouthing smart remarks about what could be mistaken as a display of affection. Sure, it wasn't rare that she'd willingly fall asleep on Jason and he allowed it. They grew up together on the streets; it was a common thing for them. Leaning on each other for support – it's what they always did.

"What information was it?" Bruce asked as though they were talking about the weather.

"Just something from a neighborhood gang to another. Nothing valuable. I got enough to pay for the dress and for tomorrow's dinner." She said with just about as much nonchalance and inched a bit closer to Jason. Opening one eye, she looked up at him. "You haven't said anything." Usually, he would be having a cow about her personally making the information drops. Before he was adopted by Bruce and after Alex Grey died, Jason had been the one to make the drops for her when she hadn't enough money to hire a messenger, even when she tried all she could to let her do it so he wouldn't get hurt.

"You really shouldn't be doing that by yourself, Blaire." He muttered, surprisingly calm for this situation. Blaire didn't quite know if she was hurt or not.

"I had my weapons, I could get by if I had to, Jay. Don't worry." She said with a shrug, closed her eyes again, and yawned. "How's Gotham's little girl on fire doing?" Blaire's lips quirked just a little at the sigh that came from Bruce Wayne.

"Not quite sure." He replied tightly. "Find anything more on Wilt, the Blades, or the Volkov family?"

For a while, she didn't reply, leaving the subject hanging in the air to suffer. Then, she answered, "It's all in the flash drive. Interesting occupation Lev Volkov had." She opened her eyes to see Bruce quirk an eyebrow at her, curious as to why she said 'had.' "I don't know if Lev is alive. Andrii, her brother, is for sure dead. He was part of the Shadows."

Each of the Bats tensed, especially Dick, who looked more worried than anyone else. He exchanged glances with his adoptive father. "Do you think…?"

"Not sure," Bruce said briskly and nodded at Blaire to continue. She returned the gesture politely.

"Anyway, about the Blades and Wilt, there's very little information. In old texts the Blades were fabled to be an elite group of warriors based out of Asia who were guards of great emperors and monarchs. As for Wilt," Blaire paused and tapped her fingers on her legs. "Well, no one knew she existed until twenty years ago when the Blades suddenly became active and hostile towards the so-called innocent." She earned a small glare from Bruce at that.

Bruce sighed and glanced at the small girl. She was about five feet tall, maybe five-foot-one. "Thanks for the information, Blaire. You still have no idea what the Blades did with those weapon designs you stole for them from Scatter, do you?"

The girl suddenly snapped up, her eyes narrow. "I didn't steal anything, Bruce. I was instructed to insert a virus to corrupt the systems for a week. That's all. That was before we had our deal, so don't get snappy with me." She defended quickly, her tone sharp.

The billionaire vigilante just stared at her before nodding curtly. "Right."

Exhausted, Blaire fell back onto Jason's shoulder and brought her legs close to her chest. She yawned, again. "I need an energy drink."

She could feel Dick shift in his seat. "You can have the rest of my Rockstar." He offered. Eyes stilled closed, the bi-color haired girl shook her head with a disgusted expression.

"Gross. Cooties."

"You don't seem to mind Jason's cooties," Dick cooed. "Ow!"

Blaire was pretty sure she and Jason agreed that the punch and kick was what Dick deserved.

* * *

**Gotham City**

**September 8th 17:45 EDT**

She saw the guest list. She'd been there for thirty minutes. In a dress. She was staring at the glass doors, watching every neatly dressed man and woman pass, catching a glimpse of the occasional familiar face from school. Though, the familiar face she was looking for was the three that would save her life on this night.

Sasha was relieved to know she'd have a few friends by her during the event. Those friends included Ivan McCornick, Barbra Gordon, and Dick Grayson. So far, none of them made an appearance. It was driving her nuts.

The heiress was dressed in a beautiful, cute, highly constructed sweetheart bodice dress. The tiers of the skirt resembled a rose in bloom, accompanied by black tulle on the hem and delicate beading on the bust. It was…elegant. And over four-hundred bucks. Surprisingly, Sasha was coping well in delicate black heels. Her stylist braided a strand of her hair opposite of the side where he bangs swayed into the rest of her hair back behind in a diagonal way. Her eyes were accented by smoky shadows, and her red tinted lips contrasted against her deathly pale skin. Around her right wrist was a gothic, black, fabric bracelet, complimented by elegant lace, and around her neck was sleek, black beads with something that Sasha found a great interest in whilst shopping with her mother.

It was a pendant made of onyx into the shape of a black fox with rubies for eyes. Sasha didn't protest against Rosalie getting it for her. However, it did make her feel a little guiltier about what she would do that night. She would confront Rosalie about her wishes, and if Rosalie decided against it, Sasha would run away for the final time. Never to come back. That was her plan. There was nothing less solid about it.

"Sasha!" An overly flamboyant, male voice screamed into her ear as Sasha couldn't help herself but nearly jump out of her train with a yelp. She turned sharply to meet the playful gaze of her favorite peer.

"Goddammit, Ivan!" She cried and hugged him. "You've no idea how long I've been waiting for your ass!" Sasha hissed and retracted.

Ivan rolled his eyes. "My perfect ass has been here this whole time, girlie," He said and eyed her up and down with a large grin. "Speaking of which, you look so perfect!"

Sasha blushed very lightly and hid her face behind her bangs which Ivan pushed back away from her dark eyes. "You think?"

"A true rose of Scatter Corp, if you ask me." He said, still grinning. "Where's mommy?"

Her expression dropped and she gaped at him. Why on earth would he ask that? "_Mommy_ is in the land of Idon'tgiveaflyingfuck."

Ivan grunted and rolled his eyes, a little too exaggeratedly. "Potty mouth," He muttered and swatted at her. "She lettin' you off the leash tonight or something?"

"Until the press conference, more than likely," She said with a shrug. "I think I'm free to hang with the guys until then."

Ivan purred and rubbed his shoulder against hers. "Mmm, good thing too – did you see the guest list?" He asked her in a sassy tone, arching a brow as high as he could.

Sasha rolled her eyes. Of course, he would go to that subject. "Yes, I did, Ivan." She said and poked him in the shoulder. Hard. Her friend pouted and turned his head away. "I hope you aren't planning on getting me hooked up with someone tonight, because trust me, I have better things to do."

His frown deepened. "You're no fun," He whined, wiggling in annoyance. She rolled her eyes, again, and got up. The first person she ran into while wandering around was Barbra Gordon. The redhead was dressed elegantly in a black grown with a sweetheart neckline. She smiled at Ivan and Sasha.

"Hey, guys, how's everything?" Barbra asked, placing a hand on her hip.

"Great!" Was Ivan's response.

"I'm trying; I really am, Babs," Sasha, however, was a little more blunt. Barbra laughed lightly and shrugged.

"It'll get better, don't worry. The press outside didn't bother you, did they?" She asked, looking a bit worried.

Luckily, the press had not bothered her. Yet. "No, Rosalie made sure we got here early. She doesn't want the unauthorized press getting ahold of me just yet," Sasha winced just a little at her last remark. Of course, Rosalie had no problem for the authorized interviewers and reporters questioning her later on when they were allowed. "So, what is up with the big gala and everything?"

Again, Barbra shrugged. "Not exactly sure, but apparently all of Gotham's local business people decided to get together for a meeting of some sort, have a little party, invite the press and show off what they got. They even invited my dad and the mayor, but I don't think he'll be coming."

Sasha scoffed and rolled her eyes. So that's where Rosalie was. Way to tell her about everything. "I feel like such a purse dog…" She muttered and earned a few confused looks from Barbra and Ivan. "Rosalie didn't tell me that I was just a little accessory to look at while she did business."

The wide-eyed stares remained.

"I need a drink,"

* * *

It wasn't long until the Wayne family arrived with their guest, Blaire Grey. The girl had a few problems getting in, but Bruce Wayne's usual get-out-of-jail-free card worked the trick to allow her inside to socialize with the rest of the people invited who did not immediately retreat to the back for their meeting. Sasha was speaking philosophy with some strangers who were curious about her endeavors in Russia when she saw the group of four walk through the door. From the corner of her eye she saw Bruce Wayne, nicely groomed and well built, politely talking to a few people before dismissing himself to the same place where her mother would be.

Sasha noticed Blaire standing idly by, tapping her fingers rhythmically on her side, dull, mossy eyes looking over every man and woman that passed. She noticed that the younger girl had a habit doing that – observing, listening, and looking. She was very silent and very intuitive. She also had a weird way of knowing a lot of things. Sasha was told Blaire had all A's and she had an incredible memory. Not only that, but the girl was one of the best artists she'd ever seen. She also heard that Blaire could sing, but she'd yet to figure that out.

"You are such a smart, young lady, Aleksandra," The man said with a respectful nod. She returned the gesture and smiled tightly. "What are your thoughts on Gotham's current state of criminal justice?" He asked her.

Sasha looked at her drink and took a sip before responding. "You mean how we have vigilantes running amuck?" She clarified.

The man, whom she learned his name was Thomas, nodded vigorously. "Yes! I've noticed her mother has a very…narrow minded opinion, no offense to her at all. I myself am rather indifferent to the scenario, to be truthful."

"Oh, well it is good to speak the truth," She said generously, ducking her head slightly. "My stand point on it is actually a bit…well, both indifferent and supportive of the out-of-law vigilantes. What's so wrong with having a little hand taking care of the bad guys? Even if it is just a huge conspiracy, isn't it good that the baddies are getting off the street?" She shrugged slightly.

"Ha!" The man bellowed and smiled. "Again, I must compliment how marvelous you are, Aleksandra," Thomas said and tipped his glass to her. "Onto a more casual subject – how has school been going for you, I'm aware that this would be your first year not taking homeschooling?"

Sasha nodded. "Indeed it is," She began. "I'm glad to finally taking some sort of outside education, but algebra sucks, and physics is a bit boring," The girl said blandly and took a quick look around. "Um, it's been nice talking with you, Mr. Davis-"

"Thomas,"

"Thomas, but I really must get back to my friends."

He nodded in understanding and she left quickly to retreat where Ivan was sitting. He bumped his hip into hers. "Hey, girly, what's up?"

She rolled her eyes. "Making conversation, what about you?" He shrugged..

"Eh…" Was his response and he took a sip of his drink. "This is so boring…" He whined and pretended to kick dust up. "Worst party ever."

"Oh, dear," Sasha murmured and patted his cheek, pursing her lips. "You're so needy,"

Ivan grinned and latched onto her. "I need, Sash! I need!" He cried through his laughter and Sasha tried to pull away, laughing as well.

"Dammit, Ivan," She growled lowly, still giggling. "Get off! You're making a scene, you freak!"

"I found them," An absent voice said and both teens looked to see Blaire standing infront of them next to Jason Todd. Behind them was Dick Grayson looking amused as always. Quickly, Sasha shoved her friend off her and rolled her eyes before greeting the others.

"Hey," She said and elbowed Ivan who managed to sputter a greeting. "You guys are fashionably late,"

Before anyone could speak an excuse, Blaire jammed her thumb at Jason. "He couldn't remember where I lived, even though he's been going there since we were like…seven," She said, rolling her eyes.

"How are you tonight?" Dick asked her, walking up past his adoptive brother and his friend. Sasha caught the look Ivan gave her before excusing himself and running off. She scowled at him and shook her head, but quickly composed herself when she saw Dick's concerned look.

"I feel like my mom's new favorite accessory. You?" She stated blandly as though she hadn't said what she said. The boy eyed her for a while and then smiled in understanding.

"I'm doing pretty okay myself," He said and looked over her dress. "Here I thought you were going to be wearing jeans and hoodie," He grinned and she laughed.

Sasha picked at the hem of her dress and chuckled. "Heh, thanks?" She said in inquiry. "You clean up nice, yourself, Dick,"

Though, she couldn't say he looked any different than when he was at school, set aside the very nice suit he was wearing. She looked over at Jason, who had nearly the same attire only just a bit more careless about it. As if he didn't really care whether or not he looked good at the party for glorified, privileged folks. Blaire was just the same way, even though she had a nice, probably new, dress, she still had on torn sneakers and her hair was a bit messy. However, Dick was a bit cleaner.

"Thanks," He said and looked around. "Anyone else here?"

"Barbra was here earlier, but I think she's somewhere with the commissioner. You already saw the walking fruitcake go by, right?" She joked, referring to her friend, Ivan. Dick seemed to get the joke and laughed lightly. Sasha smiled. "That's about it, I guess."

"And your mom?"

"Same place Bruce Wayne should be, I'm assuming," She said and looked around for something to do. Oh, this night was just beginning.

* * *

The building was filling up over the hours and Sasha kept an eye out for her mother. She knew it wouldn't be long until she would have to return to her mother's side and she was trying to spend her limited time socializing as much as she could. For all she knew, she might not be seeing these friends soon enough. They were talking about the usual stuff – school affairs, projects, recent events. Blaire talked very little unless spoken to directly, otherwise she was mindlessly tapping against anything in reach.

"We'll be getting progress reports soon," Barbra said, a tight smile tugging at her lips. "Any idea what grades look like?"

No one seemed to have any idea as they shifted uncomfortably. Some more than others. Ivan had a nervous look and suddenly became more interested in picking at his salad, rather than talking like he usually would. Sasha scoffed at him, rolling her eyes. She didn't really care about her grades, but she was sure that she had an F in math. Yay. That was sure to look bad on her permanent record.

"Well," Dick said, breaking the silence as she balanced on his chair. "I bet I have decent grades, besides, it's just a progress report card. Those don't go in the files."

Blaire nodded in agreement. "It's interesting to see all of the students with bad grades freak out and then wait until the last week of the quarter to raise their grades." She said simply and yawned. The bi-color-haired girl folded her arms over the table and rested her head. Sasha eyed her. How could one girl be so tired this early? Then again, Blaire always seemed tired. She turned her head her for eyes to peek out and she glanced over at Jason. "You are being oddly quiet tonight,"

"Says the introvert." Jason grunted, rolling his eyes at his childhood friend. Blaire continued to stare at him, her mossy green eyes narrowed and deadly. He sighed. "Shut up,"

Satisfied, Blaire smirked lightly and turned her head back into her folded arms. Sasha chuckled and looked over at Ivan, she elbowed him in the stomach. "What's up, fruitcake?"

"Girly, are you tryin' to start a fight?" He questioned her with an arched brow, pointing his fork at her threateningly. Her devilish grin grew.

"I'm bored."

"I will pull those precious locks out of your pretty little skull, Volkov,"

"Bite me."

"You are looking rather delicious tonight."

"Says the fruitcake!"

Sasha and Ivan were unaware of the strange stares they received from the rest of the group. Barbra shook her head and Dick cackled at their interactions. It was a sight to behold with their snarky bickering. Though, Dick knew Sasha and he knew that if Ivan took a wrong step, she would tackle him to the ground. Though, the peaceful air didn't last long when a group of frivolous young girls passed by. They seemed to be sophomores. One of them, a bleached blond looked over at Blaire in a disgusted scowl.

Their tones were rushed as they talked to each other, but Blaire could hear them. She peeked out from her gather and stared at the girls as they glanced over at her and giggled together. She sighed and got up. "It's too damn noisy in here." She muttered in monotone and left to go outside.

Barbra and Sasha's gazes followed the girl as she left, looking confused and they turned to Jason, who, of course, would know what's going on. "Is she leaving?" Barbra asked cautiously. He shook his head no.

"No. It's a thing she does to tune out things entirely. You could tell she was getting anxiety because she was tapping on things to keep her mind off the noise." He replied and glanced in the direction Blaire disappeared. "She'll be back."

The two girls continued to stare at him quizzically. "Aren't you going to see if she's okay?" Sasha asked, her tone surprisingly concerned.

"If I do, she won't talk to me."

"Fair enough?" Barbra murmured and sighed, looking over across the large room. "Seems like the meeting is over." Sasha quickly turned to see the group of officials walking out of a hall and into the room. Two of those people were Bruce Wayne and Rosalie Himura. The two were talking to each other when they spotted the table and came over together. Rosalie made sure to give her daughter a narrow-eyed glance when she saw that she was with boys. Of course, Sasha returned the gesture with a sneer.

Taking a breath, the woman turned back at Bruce and bowed her head. "I understand your concerns, Mr. Wayne. Scatter Corp is indeed very young in America, but I do not think we will need a partnership with Wayne Tech just yet." She said generously, but tightly. She turned to look at her daughter. "Please excuse me and my daughter, we've business to attend to. Will you be joining the press conference?"

Bruce shook his head. "No, I'm afraid not, Ms. Himura. I've business to attend to as well, and I'm sad to say that I'll have to leave soon." He looked over the table and his brow furrowed. "Where's Blaire?"

"Doing her thing," Jason replied gruffly.

"Oh," Sasha couldn't help but want to laugh at the dumbfounded expression on his face. "I'll send Alfred to pick you guys up later." He said briskly and left the scene after a couple goodbyes from the two boys. Again, Rosalie eyed Sasha to get up and she obliged. She smiled at Barbra, and Barbra only.

"Thank you for keeping my daughter company, Miss Gordon." She said politely.

"My pleasure," Barbra replied, eyeing the daughter and mother suspiciously. "The press will be here in less than half an hour."

Nodding generously, Rosalie dragged Sasha from the table and close to the wall where they stood. Rosalie's dark eyes were narrow and her arms were crossed. "Who were they?" She asked sharply.

"Just some friends from school," Sasha answered quickly and guardedly. "Mom, I need to talk-"

"Well, good." Rosalie interrupted promptly, nodding her head in approval. "I do hope they are just friends. Cannot allow you to be whisked away by some petty teenage romance, can we?" She chuckled lightly as though the idea were a joke.

Sasha stared at her. "Mom, I really need to talk to you."

"Can it not wait until later, dear? I would rather get a nice glass of wine before having to talk again,"

"No, Rosalie, it can't!" Sasha snapped, her eyes narrow. This was it. This was the time she would tell her what's been tickling her tongue for the past couple months. Rosalie stared at her with wide eyes before she relaxed and gestured for her to speak. The girl sighed, tempted to fiddle with the hem of her dress, but she didn't out of desire to no look like a cowardly fool. Instead, her eyes never left her mother's gaze. "Mother, I've decided that I'm going to start the hero gig, whether or like it or not."

The color red began to rise on Rosalie's face. "Aleksandra, I thought I said-"

"I know what you said, but I'm choosing not to abide by it. This is my life, Rosalie, not yours. You have your opinions and I have mine, it's as simple as that." Sasha declared, keeping her voice low, strong, and determined. "You can chain me up in a cage in your basement, and I'll still do what I want." She took a shaky breath. "And if you declare me no longer your daughter, take away my rights as heiress to Scatter, and give me nowhere to stay, I will still keep my mind set on this. My time in – in Russia, has taught me that I want to help people."

"You owe those people nothing!" Rosalie snarled lowly, her voice dripping with disappointment and anger. "They do not deserve the attention of someone as high ranked as you are. It's a dog-eat-dog world, Aleksandra, you, who trained with Lev, should know that. The minute you start this, the world will show you no mercy, you understand? You'll get killed!"

Perhaps that was true. With Wilt after her throat, there was no guarantee that Sasha would survive even her first week as a vigilante. Though, that did not change her mind. "The moment I came into the world, there was a chance I would be killed. I'll die anyway, so why not do it fighting?" She said, her fists balling up in the energy that ran through her veins. "Mom. This is who I am. I love fighting and want to use my abilities, my talents to help people. Is that so bad?"

Rosalie stared at her daughter, not sure what to say. She held a sad expression on her face when she finally spoke, though. "I suppose not, Aleksandra. Just know that all I've ever wanted to do is protect you,"

"And I'm trying to show you that I don't need to be protected anymore. I can handle myself just fine," Sasha assured her, hoping that maybe there was a chance for them. After all, Rosalie was her only link to her past at that time.

The woman's shoulders rose and fell as she took in a deep, deep breath and turned, her dark gaze towards the floor. Sasha felt pain sting inside her. She'd never seen her mother like this. "I'm sure you can handle on your own just fine, Aleksandra." Rosalie said, her voice strained. She looked up and towards the group of reporters that began to gather in the room. "They're here. We must go to our assigned table now,"

With her head down, coal-like locks hiding her face, Sasha followed her mother across the room to the table. There were no words shared between them for the rest of that night. No words had to be spoken. She knew just exactly what happened. Rosalie Himura gave up her only daughter.

* * *

**Gotham City**

**September 8th 23:38 EDT**

What made Rosalie give up her daughter was all out of selfishness. She knew this. She didn't want to be burdened with the thought that she, a mother, let her daughter walk away to her death. Yet, the guilt still tore at her heart. Rosalie was a selfish woman, indeed. During the press conference, she had announced her disowning of Aleksandra Volkov, but, by right of birth, the girl would remain heiress to Scatter Corp. Not that it would matter. Rosalie knew very well that it wouldn't take long for that…thing to slaughter her daughter. The worst part of it all, though, was the fact that Rosalie could do nothing to prevent it. For twenty long years she'd fought to protect the few things she had in her life and she just lost it all in a few words.

Why was it that simple?

Rosalie Himura stood on the balcony of the building of the party, fiddling with her wine glass and watching the moon's silver light glisten on the red, liquid surface. Her eyes burned and her breath was short. What was she doing? A sophisticated woman such as herself shouldn't be succumbing to such low standards. It was dishonorable and certainly didn't help her situation. She didn't turn when she heard a heavy thud on the concrete floor behind her. Instead, she shifted so the wavy, dark brown locks on her shoulders fell back behind her where they belonged.

"You let her go." Said a very gruff voice in the darkness. Rosalie sighed and took a sip of her wine. Though, she sip turned into a full-on chug and she downed the alcohol. Still holding her glass in her right hand, she leaned against the railing and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Yes." She answered hoarsely. "I don't suppose you've come to lecture me, hmm?" She forced a tight smile on her lips and she turned, leaning back in a not so lady-like manner. The dark figure didn't answer. Instead, he stood idly by. "Well? I'm waiting! I should've been harsher on her, I should have forbidden her to ever even think about being like – like you! I tried that, and she still won't listen. I blame her father for her stubbornness. Andrii was the same damn way."

"You're a mess," The figure said and he stepped out of the shadows.

Rosalie pointed a wavering finger at Batman and scowled. "And you're an ass!" A slight English accent began to peek out of her voice in her tipsy banter. "A damned, bat's ass. Yes, you are!" There was no comment from the Dark Knight. Taking his silence as a dismissal, Rosalie turned back again, setting her glass down and covering her face with her hands. She shook her head, muttering things lowly in a broken voice. "I'm disgusted with myself, Batman. How can I live knowing that I let my beloved daughter walk to her death?"

"How can you be so sure Sasha will die?" Batman asked cautiously. Her hands slid down so she could glare at any looming shadows. Oh, that woman was having fun listening to this, wasn't she?

"Wilt is an unstoppable force. She'll stop at nothing to get what she wants." Rosalie said scornfully. "My sister – no, that _thing_ possessing my sister is a hunter and my daughter is the prey. Like a hungry lone wolf, she will show no mercy." The woman turned around, her eyes red and puffy. "It won't be long until I die, Batman."

Batman's gaze narrowed. "What do you mean?" His tone was serious and slightly concerned. Rosalie smiled and brought a hand up to her face as she looked up at the sky.

"Wilt will want to get revenge on me for taking what was rightfully hers, and then she will take my daughter's place as heiress to Scatter and head of the Himura Family. When that happens, she will use my murder as bait for Sasha. You cannot let her try to save me. She is not yet ready to face her." She explained carefully.

"I thought you said Sasha has no chance," Batman countered.

Rosalie did not speak for a long time before replying. Her voice was steady, yet unsure. As if she were testing the words with confidence. "I do not think she may ever defeat Wilt, however she can prolong the battle when she is strong enough. In her state, if what you are saying about her is true, she will not be mentally, spiritually, or physically stable to fight Wilt until the time is right. However," She looked at Batman at where his eyes should be. Despite her slight drunkenness, she remained serious. "If it comes down to the final battle, Wilt will _have_ to be killed, make no mistake. Not only will it dispel the demon within her, but it will set her soul free."

"Killing people isn't-"

"That thing is not a person! It is a leech, a parasite using my sister's body as a host!" Rosalie cried in all her anger towards the thing that threatened everything and everyone she loved. "If you cannot kill it, find someone who will."

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**-REVIEW!**


	11. Chapter Ten

**From the Ashes**

**Author's Note: **I'm so sorry for the late update, again! I am really, really sorry! You have no idea how bad I feel for procrastinating like this! It drives me nuts to no end and I just hate not updating and I always beat myself up for it and…meh! I'm sorry. I really am. So, since I have been lacking the time to update long chapters every week, I'll try to update every week but with shorter chapters. I'm going to try it for about a month and get my feet wet, see how it flies, and if I don't like it, I may go on a temporary hiatus. I don't want to go on a temp. hiatus, but I was almost pushed to that edge until I decided to test out shorter chapters. Hey, maybe if I'm lucky I'll get in a longer chapter, but basically I'll plan for short chapters. If I can't get a long chapter, then I will post. I promise.

Watch, I'll go break my promise. Feel free to slap my hand if I do.

Anyway, lookie! A new chapter! This one, unfortunately, doesn't move too far into the plot but we get to see some bonding and it's basically a deep breath from all the plot throwing up this fic has been giving you guys. I hope it's a nice breath of fresh air. A little note, in case you think the writing is weird, I was experimenting with this chapter. At the beginning, I'm taking my usual forte in writing and then I decide to change it up a bit by not writing thought verbs. Eventually, I just kinda gave up. So, this chapter I am NOT proud of at all. So, despite the horrible writing, enjoy the chapter and thank you for reading. Don't forget to review and feel free to favorite and follow!

**Disclaimer: **I do **NOT** own **Young Justice**, **DC** or **any other reference** I make in **From the Ashes**. I just own the **plot** and **my OCs**.

**Chapter Ten**

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**Gotham City**

**September 22th 23:21 EDT**

"Let me go! Please!" A young woman cried, her attempts to scream muffled by a thick gather of cloth. Her body struggled against two other men that tried to drag her into the back of a van, dark brown eyes filled with terror. Though, that terror began to subside as her eyelids began to droop and her body began to weaken. The men laid her back into the van and the younger of the two began to tie up her limbs and put duct tape over her mouth.

The older lit a cigarette and leaned against the van. "Another decoration for the Cage. Boss's been makin' a lot calls for new dancers," Said the younger of the two.

"What do you expect?" The elder grunted. "We've been gettin' higher bidders. Hurry up, will ya'? I don't wanna get caught by some dumbass in tights because you're too fuckin' slow." He snapped, kicking his back leg up to hit his partner. He yelped and scurried into the car. "Rookies,"

"We're not all that bad," A voice echoed through the alley and the street lights nearby began to flicker, threatening to burst in a furry of flames. The silhouette of a curvy, young woman began to walk down the alleyway, and she stopped infront of the men, placing a hand on her hip tilting her head to the side. Coal-colored locks spilled over her shoulders and past her masked face.

The mask was a simply black domino mask with amber detailing that matched her glowing tattoos that decorated parts of her body. She wore thick, black combat boots complimented by socks of different heights, one ending at her thigh, the other at her knee, and black shorts under a skirt-like belt that held a box of matches, a few flash bombs, and two pairs of handcuffs. The skirt was thick and made of black leather with the leather and white fabric draping off to the right and touching the beginning of her knee. On the longest flap of her belt was a foxlike insignia etched into the leather. Her top matched the amber hew of her eyes and tattoos, and her black, fingerless gloves turned into sleeves of black armor pieces on her shoulders and elbows. A thick chain with a large padlock rested around her hips.

The girl glanced over at the woman in the car. "Bastards." She growled. One of the men, the elder, pulled out a pistol, pointing it straight at her skull. "Taking advantage of a woman like-" The sound of thunder in close proximity echoed through the night and the lights instantly busted into flames that traveled down to the girl's body just last second as she ducked and flipped back, kicking her leg up to strike the man in the jaw. The gun went flying and before the other could react, a blur of red, orange, and yellow flames appeared behind him and the girl had kicked onto the frame of the van and made a downward punch at him, causing his body to slam into the wall nearest to him. She landed, caught the gun, and unloaded it, tossing it into the shadows.

She turned to face the one man still conscious, the younger, who scurried against the wall. "What the hell are you?"

"That question's a little cliché, don't you think?" She asked, kneeling down to his level. "Seriously, you see all this news about guys from different planets, people who can run faster than the speed of light, et cetera, et cetera, and you still ask me what I am?" The girl made her eye roll obvious to the man. "I'm a pyro who likes mythology, 'kay? Name's Foxfire."

The young man continued to look Foxfire up and down like she was crazy. "Foxfire?"

"You know, the powers that the mythological creatures Kitsune use?" She hinted at, slightly getting off track of what she wanted. He didn't seem to get the reference. Foxfire sighed. "Whatever. You do trafficking for a so-called 'Cage,' correct?" He didn't hesitate to nod. "I need information. Boss? Where it's located? Anything."

"I-I don't know anythin' about the actual location. We just get the show girls and hand 'em off to the higher-ups." He answered quickly. Foxfire suddenly took on a more serious tone, her eyes narrow and her mind fully focused on the information.

"Where do you trade in the girls?" She questioned sharply, her fingers dancing with the flames that coated them.

"It depends on where they at, ya' know! It's at different places so the Bat don't catch up on no patterns. Look, I don't wanna go to jail! Please let me go. I'm just with the wrong crowd. I-" Foxfire swiftly brought a sharp blow to the side of his neck, causing him to slump over in unconsciousness. She sighed and stood up, hands on her hips. This was yet another dead end. Great. Foxfire had heard of the title Cage and knew it was something illegal, thanks to leads by Artemis. Though, that was as far as she got. She knew that the franchise was kidnapping young, attractive women and possibly using them for sex trafficking or dancing for whatever this Cage was.

Foxfire looked over at the unconscious woman. Maybe she could help. If she can't help with finding Cage, maybe she could help prevent the kidnappings. It was a start. Exhausted, she walked over to the van and dragged the woman out, replacing her with the two men, handcuffing them together and snatching the keys out of one of their pockets. She locked the van up and made sure to keep a window cracked. Afterwards, she slashed the tires and pulled out the battery to the engine, lighting it in flames produced by her matches and chucking it into the trash.

She stood close to the woman as she activated her Bluetooth and called the police. They picked up immediately. "GCPD. What's you emergency?"

"Hi, I'd like to report two suspicious looking men locked up in a van off Murphy Avenue. Both Caucasian males and unconscious, one appearing to be in his mid to late twenties, the other being possibly in his later forties. I found an unconscious woman nearby, her hands were bound and her mouth was covered in duct tape." The vigilante said as she checked the woman over. "She seemed to be unharmed."

"Off Murphy Avenue, correct? Near Miller Harbor?" The woman on the other end of the line asked.

"Yes."

"Thank you, Miss. Authorities will be over right away."

"Alright." Foxfire hung up and looked up at the sky before slapping the woman's face gently to wake her up. She woke up with a start and attempted to scream when the vigilante covered her mouth. "Easy. I'm not going to hurt you. I'm one of the good guys." The woman looked her up and down, her eyes terrified and horror filled. "I know I'm not in tights, but you gotta trust me. Do you trust me?"

The woman shook her head and she slowly removed her hand. Luckily, she didn't scream. Instead, she said, in a very shaky voice, "T-Thank you,"

"There's no need to thank me, really." The vigilante dismissed. "However, I do need to know how you came in contact with these men,"

She stared at the ground long and hard, her brow furrowed as she tried to figure out the answers to the question. "I…It was, well, one of those men acted as my chauffeur when I came to town. I was accepted for a job and I was supposed to move here."

Foxfire arched a brow. "How did you come across the job opening?"

"It was an email. Probably some spam that didn't go directly to my box, I don't know…" She said frantically, her eye's making connections with all the signs. "I'm such an idiot…"

"Hey," The girl assured. "It's alright. You're not an idiot. You say you needed a job?" She nodded frantically, trying to force words of out her throat.

"Y-Yes. They were accepting high-school drop-outs." She informed finally. Foxfire nodded and kept all the information in her head. Her head shot up when she saw the flashing of red lights and the yowling of familiar sirens.

She turned to face the woman and stood up. "The authorities are here. You'll be fine. I promise." She said quickly and the rest of the street lights blew out as she dashed down the block and turned into a dark alleyway.

Sixteen days. One hour. Forty minutes. That's how long it's been since Aleksandra Volkov, otherwise known as Sasha, had last seen her mother. That's how long it's been since Foxfire was created. That's how long it's been since she started swapping houses between Artemis and Ivan. She had nowhere else to go. She didn't want to inconvenience Barbara, nor did she really want to bother Dick and his family. Artemis was modest about her staying at her small apartment. The archer agreed not to notify the rest of the Team of her late nights in Gotham. However, she knew full well that the Bats knew of her new found hobby. In fact, just the night before the Dark Knight had pressed onto her the whole responsibilities talk. She ditched about a fourth through the speech. There was no doubt that they would find her again.

And if Bats knew she was patrolling, that meant the Boy Wonder did as well.

The nights in Gotham began to get cooler over the days, and the leaves began to turn. Fall and Winter were approaching. That was just what Foxfire – Sasha, needed. She had no idea what would happen when the winter months would come. She'd have to leave it all to guess work. As she ran through the alleyways and climbed up fire escapes, her mind began to go over the information she had obtained in these past few nights.

The Cage. It was some illegal business of some sort that was currently in the process of kidnapping young women. She heard the same story from each woman. They were from out of state, sometimes out of country, and had received an email asking for work – no high school diploma required. Some would accept, others would reject. The one's that accepted were given a ticket to Gotham and someone from the "job" would pick them up, acting as a sort of escort, and they would eventually drug them somehow and take them to some facility to trade in.

Foxfire would let them kidnap the women, follow them to the trade, and then follow from there to see the base of things. Could she really risk it, though? She was rookie. An amateur. She lacked the experience to know what to do if she ended up with a dozen guns pointed at her head.

She sighed and approached the old Zeta-tube. It was an old, rusty phone booth in some alleyway. There she waited, eyes scanning the rooftops and cloudy skies. What was she watching for? The familiar silhouettes of Robin and Batman? If so, why? It wasn't like she wanted to talk to them. She would rather not – at least not the Bat. Sasha pulled off her mask and tapped her Bluetooth to check the time. Artemis said she would get back in the city around midnight to do patrolling with her. She hummed impatiently. Where was she?

She could call her. The thought tempted her as she held her hand close to her headset. She decided otherwise, though, sighing as she brought her hand down and crossed her arms. Maybe, she could call a friend to pass the time? Sasha scoffed. As if that wasn't totally inappropriate. Calling a friend while out on a late night patrol as some rookie vigilante. Yeah, that was the best pastime. She rolled her eyes at herself. _Just be patient, Sash. Remember – a hunter always waits for its prey. _

She thought on what her little voice had just said to her. _Artemis is my fucking prey? _Obviously, her analogies were wearing off. How lovely. Luckily, a darker presence snapped her out of her impatient thoughts.

"Artemis will not be patrolling with you, tonight." A ridged and rusty voice growled as the Bat himself stepped out of the shadows. Sasha turned to look at him, her brow arched and her sass physically portrayed.

"And why, pray tell, is that, Bats?" She asked sharply and playfully.

Batman took a while to reply. "I'm patrolling with you." He said simply. She looked at him in further question. "You need to be kept in check,"

"Do you not trust Artemis to look after me?" Sasha countered quickly. A silence split through the pair and the only thing between them now was the cold concrete ground and chill autumn-night air. She took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of wet stone and gasoline. "Look," She finally spoke with a less violent tone. "I've been off duty for half an hour, god knows what has happened in those minutes. I'm going back on patrol. Join me, don't join me. I don't care." With that, she turned and started for the rest of the city.

"Sasha." Batman's gravelly voice didn't stop her as she walked out of the alleyway. "I don't doubt that you can fight in this world, nor do I mistrust Artemis's skills of surveillance." She began to slow her pace at these words, blinking as she stared down at the lights reflected in the wetness on the concrete. "You can't do this alone. Why don't you join the Team and start training with them?"

Her chest rose and fell and she fingered at the fabric draped on her felt, fondling over how the silk texture felt against her slightly burned fingertips. A pause followed his offer and she swallowed down a knot in her throat. She turned around and pursed her slightly chapped lips together. "I…I want to solve this case first. Before I do anything involving the Team, I need to solve this case."

The dark shadow of a vigilante approached her, towering over her stocky, 5'4" frame. "Elaborate." He ordered strictly. Sasha bit into the side of her cheek, the rough, scarred skin slightly brushing her tongue as she did so.

She nodded quickly and turned again to face her elder. She tapped on her headset. It projected several images from a small microphone device close to her jaw. The images included the women she'd rescued the last few nights she'd been investigating as well as the men she'd taken down during their abduction process. Speaking very calmly, she pointed at each piece of information and began to speak of the scenarios in which she had found the women and different theories about what exactly the 'Cage' was. Batman listened intently on her small, slightly rusty voice. She remained calm during her explanation, her composure straight and strong.

"I don't have anywhere else to go with this other than an informant, Artemis, or you…" She said, finishing her lecture promptly. "To be _completely_ truthful, you were my last resort." The girl admitted, shrinking back and smiling sheepishly. Batman, however, remained with a serious expression.

"The Cage…" He mused, his words had completely ignored her comment. "I haven't done too much investigating into it, but the problem of its existence seems to be growing. It could be an underground association for illegal cage fights. A lot of crime goes on around those things – human trafficking, drug dealing, illegal gambling, smuggling. The list goes on."

"Obviously." Sasha muttered, turning around and setting both hands on her hips. "So how do we bust it? Find the location, kick a few asses, report?"

"No. Find the location, report," The Dark Knight paused to stare her down directly. "To me and only to me, understand?"

Her head jerked to face him with an 'are you crazy?' look twisted across it. Her mouth was parted open and she scowled. "What the fu-? I'm not part of your little merry band of heroes and heroines. I can't gain experience if you do all the work for me."

"You should have thought of that before you made Gotham your base of operations. You may have powers, but if there are superhumans in the association, you might not stand a chance." He stated dryly. Sasha continued to glare at him, amber orbs narrow and flaring like glowering embers of a dying flame.

"I'm willing to negotiate, Batman. I need to do at least this. I started this case and I'm going to finish it. With or without your help." She finalized, her tone stern and factual.

Batman and Foxfire stood in silence, their eyes locked in a stare down to see which would give in first. The moment seemed endless and neither spoke. Foxfire evened her breathing and rolled her shoulders back, as though she were preparing for this to last longer than it would. Finally, Batman sighed and placed a hand on her shoulder. She fought back a flinch, but her jaw clenched, her eyes wavering from determined to something unknown. "Give me three days. No patrolling until them; get rest."

"Hey! I-" She began to protest, her face twisted with anger.

"I'm letting you take the case, I want you off the streets while I get more information for you. Meet me here in three days." He interrupted sternly. Foxfire's mouth was open, still ready to protest but her voice was lost in the wind. "Go home – or whatever it is you stay, and get rest. You're still going to school?"

She nodded curtly.

"Good. Take the night off." He ordered and somehow melted into the darkness. Sasha blinked and shook her head, her brow furrowed as she stilled it and stared down in the darkness. The corner of her mouth tilted up and she shook her head, her cold laughter filling the dark silence.

"Take the night off, he says. No patrolling for three fucking days." Her tone began to grow from humorless joking to furious growling noises that one might not be able to explain correctly. She turned and began to walk out of the alley. "What the hell am I supposed to do for three fucking days?!" Sasha's voice seemed to echo throughout the entire city.

**Gotham City**

**September 23rd 11:30 EDT**

Sasha stared up at the ceiling fan as it made lazy circles through the thick, humid air in Artemis's apartment living room. In other words, her home for the past few weeks since her admittedly painful disbanding with her mother. Her chest swelled up and down in a slow and relaxed motion, and out of her parted lips came a soft sigh. Though, the sigh soon became distorted and it turned into a painful groan as she rolled over and glanced at the blond who walked into the room, her face cynically bright as she snickered at her.

"You're acting like it's the end of the world, Sash. It's just three days,"Artemis told her, chuckling hidden behind her amused tone. She sat down in one of the arm chairs and crossed her jeaned legs. "Isn't there something you wanna do? What did you do when you were with Rosalie?"

Amber eyes glanced up at the blond scornfully and she scoffed. "I went to school early in the morning, came back in the afternoon, did homework and was condemned to my room until dinner and then went to bed." She listed of dryly. "I didn't _do_ anything. Wasn't allowed to."

"Hmm," Artemis hummed as she pursed her lips as they tugged into a small smile. "Then if that's the case, why don't I show you around town? It's a Sunday and you've been too busy with your hands stuck in a bunch of files I got you for the past few weeks." She exaggerated with a chuckle. "I'm supposed to meet up with Barbara later today to go waste time, you should come with us."

Sasha wallowed in the silence of boredom for a while, blinking as she stared at the tan fringe carpet. Giving in, she groaned and stood up lazily and messily. "Fine," She said in a bit of fake distaste, but grinned otherwise. "I'll go."

Artemis smiled coyly and stood up as well. "In that case, we're leaving at noon. Hurry up and get dressed – you look like a druggie," She commented, looking the girl up and down. Sasha looked down at her appearance, a messily put together training outfit she usually wore under her vigilante get-up – usually consisting of a clean wife-beater and form-fitting, black shorts. However, this time it was just an old wife beater that had been cut into several times already and sweatpants that, unfortunately, didn't shrink in the washer like she wanted. Artemis was right; Sasha did look like a druggie.

"Right…" The coal-haired girl grimaced and slipped soundlessly into Artemis's room where she kept her clothes. Just after the door had clicked closed, it reopened to allow Sasha's head to peek out, wide-eyed and curious. "Any idea where we're going?"

Artemis arched a brow, her smile now lopsided. "My dear Sasha, are you worried about fashion?"

Sasha's face showed no sign of guilt as she snickered and shook her head. "No! I'm just making sure we aren't doing anything active or anything like that." She said, though her small voice betrayed her guarded emotions. Artemis scoffed, her shoulder jerking slightly at the motion.

"We're just gonna hang around, nothing active or formal, I swear. Wear whatever you want." Artemis told her kindly with a wry smile. Sasha sighed and nodded an "OK" and closed to the door with a scoff _clink_.

**Gotham City**

**September 23rd 12:14 EDT**

"Artemis! Hey!" A voice called from about five yards down the block. Sasha and Artemis turned their heads to see not one, but two familiar faces. One was the expected redhead who's fiery hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she wore a green t-shirt, blue jeans, and black flats. The other, however, was a certain blue-eyed, raven haired boy who had Sasha frozen at his appearance, froze because not even half any hour ago Artemis had told her it was just gonna be the girls today. The amber-eyes, masked by small pieces of semi-transparent, oxygen permeable lenses, glanced over at the archer. _What game are you playing, Crock? _

"Hey, Babs!" Artemis called back, waving her hand over as an invitation for the two. "Dick, I had no idea you were coming," She said as they approached, close enough for her to talk in a more normal tone. Sasha scoffed and rolled her eyes at her. _I call bullshit. _

"Strange, didn't Barbara tell you?" Dick said, looking about as dumbfounded as Sasha felt. Perhaps he wasn't in the scheme of things. The ward of Bruce Wayne glanced at his close, redheaded friend, a brow arched. "Babs?"

"Oops?" Barbara said cheekily, shrugging her shoulders. "Forgot. Sorry."

"No biggie, right? Just means we have a full table of four at lunch." Artemis dismissed. "Speaking of which, any idea where to go?"

"I was just thinking we'd walk down the strip and stop at any place that looks good."

"Sounds like a plan, let's go."

The blond and ginger began to walk down the sidewalk and the other two, Sasha and Dick, awkwardly followed. Sasha chewed on the inside of her cheek and glared holes into the back of Artemis's skull. Though, for doing such an act, she bit harder on her cheek – punishment for acting embarrassed. What did she have to fear? It was just Dick. The girl looked down at herself. At least she wasn't too badly dressed with dark skinny jeans and black hoodie and a navy blue shirt that had black faded letters no longer readable. She pursed her lips and let out an exhausted sigh, closing her eyes to shield the reflective sunlight on the looming clouds.

"Sash?" A voice drew her back to reality and she looked up and over at Dick. "You okay?" He looked confused as he spoke, as if Sasha were acting out of character. She was.

Though, in absence, she gave her best smirk and nodded. "Yeah," The word seemed difficult to say and it came out with a sigh. "I'm fine. Just tired. Had a late night, ya' know?"

"Totally. Bet everything's been stressful since the press conference, huh?" He inquired casually, though his tone hinted at a bit of sympathy. Sympathy that Sasha really didn't want, but probably needed.

She shrugged in response and shoved her small hands into her pockets where she fumbled with the small case of matches, fingers itching to tear one off the little pack and light it off. "Not really. Everything's been acting how it has been. I'm still surprised my mother hasn't cut me off from going to school."

Dick smiled reassuringly. "Maybe it tells you that she still cares – even if she did disown you." He said and silence fell upon the two as Sasha nodded, no words spoken. Though, before the silence could lock the two in an awkward position, Dick changed the subject quickly to bring up a new conversation. "So, how's dance been? I heard from some of the other students that you're pretty good."

"Yeah!" Sasha brightened up at the subject, the hour and a half long classes of class she constantly had to endure with one of her friends, Ivan, rushing back to her as she recalled her latest routines. "They've been going well and we might be preforming soon,"

"Cool." Dick quipped with a quick smile. "Am I invited?"

Sasha threw him a skeptical look and scoffed. "Hell no!" She spat jokingly, her scowl turned into a lopsided grin. He sputtered a chuckle and shook his head.

"Why not?"

"Because I said so…" She stated, though her 'O' began to drawl out as she attempted once again to grasp for some witty nickname – a task she'd been working as since she met the boy. "Dammit!"

"What?" He asked, grin still plastered on his face.

"I still can't figure out a name for you, and it pisses me off,"

"Temper."

"Oh? And you're so cool headed, huh, _Dick_?"

"That's foul play, Sash."

Sasha stuck out her tongue in silent defense and crossed her arms, walking ahead sassily to join the two other girls who spoke together calmly. "…Will probably be in Central City, then I'll get some things settled for college. I'm trying not to let my relationship with Wally control where I want to go for college." Artemis said, finishing off a statement that Sasha had only heard part of. She looked over at Barbara quizzically, her brows furrowed in a slight confusion.

"What do you have in mind?" Barbara asked tilting her head.

"Honestly?" Artemis countered, her voice strained and slightly annoyed. "I don't know, and Wally – he's looking into physics, of course."

Sasha turned to look at Barbara as she walked. "Hey, didn't you say you wanted to look into detective work?" She asked, genuinely curious about Barbara's goals. Barbara looked at her, mouth parted as she thought on the words to say.

"Yeah, but I don't think my dad particularly likes the idea," She answered, the tone of her comment about her dad a bit dry and sour like lime salt.

"The commissioner doesn't want his daughter following justice like he does?" Sasha inquired, her lips tilted coyly.

"I think he does, but more in the court rather than on the field."

The coal-haired girl scoffed. "Well," She placed her hands on her hips, holding her head high. "You have my support, Babs. I guess being raised by a hard core feminist counts for something, huh?"

Barbara smiled lightly. "Thanks, but – hey – I'm still a junior, I've got another year to sort these things out."

Sasha shrugged, but nodded in agreement. "True."

It didn't take long for the group of four teens to find a place that looked interesting. Dick spotted it from across the street, a small café that emitted a nice aroma of freshly baked bread, and they crossed the road quickly, despite the many angry, blaring horns as they did not cross at the white lined crosswalk just a few yards down the road. Upon Sasha's personal request, they sat inside, her only excuse was that the fall weather was already pricking at her chill-sensitive skin.

"Gonna suck for you when winter gets here," Dick chided lightly and Sasha shook her head in her so-called joy.

"I'm so not looking forward to it," She grumbled.

"How'd you survive in Russia?" Barbara asked as they sat down in a booth, she glanced at the waitress. "Water, please."

"Green tea?" She asked the waitress and received a curt nod, then she turned back at Barbara. "Honestly, I don't know." It wasn't a lie.

Artemis pulled her sweater off and leaned back into the booth, her body relaxed and she tried to smile before a realization turned that smile into a scowl. "I don't want to go to school tomorrow."

Sasha scoffed and crossed her arms, leaning back as well. "You think you're the only one?" She asked dryly and shook her head. "Aren't we supposed to have a test in English?" She turned to Dick and Barbara for answers.

Dick shrugged, though the grin on his face made it clear that any news of one wouldn't down his spirits, and Barbara was the one to provide a spoken answer. "Yeah, I think. It shouldn't be hard though – she gave us the answer key." She said and the raven-haired boy to her right suddenly looked up from his menu, blue eyes wide with alarm.

"She did? I don't think she gave us an answer key." He said, his tone conflicted and his brows furrowed.

"She did." Barbara finalized.

Setting down his menu, the boy got cocky and grinned at her. "Prove it."

Barbara began to shift in her seat as she picked up her purse and began to search through it. "Got it right here in my purse, Dick, if you want proof." She said and pulled out two sheets of papers and placed it in front of him. "Read it and weep."

He indeed read the papers, however he didn't exactly weep. More so, he sunk back in his seat and groaned. "Great. Now I have to find the answer key and attempt to cram." He grumbled, arms crossed over his chest. Sasha was giggling in her seat and she rolled her eyes at him.

"What's the matter, Dick? You didn't look too fazed about it just a second ago." She said smoothly, her lips turned upward into a smug grin. "What happened?" Her taunting was only encouraged by Artemis's muffled snickers to the side.

Dick sneered at her. "You didn't know either, Volkov," He stated bitterly in defense.

"Unlike you, I'm not such a worry wart about grades, besides, it's English; you're talking to the girl that got forth highest English entry test score in the entire school." She bragged, not meaning anything spiteful, but she couldn't help but tease. Though, the information was news for Artemis.

"Wow, really?" She asked, brow arched in surprise. "Who got first?"

Dick knew well of this information. After all, he had all access to information about the person who indeed got the highest score. "One Blaire Grey. One-hundred percent score – that girl is a genius."

Artemis's eyes went wide and she whistled. "I knew she was smart, but not that smart. Wait – isn't she in all the advanced core classes, not including being in my Psyche 3 class?" Dick nodded at her question and she just took a deep breath. "How is she possible?"

He shrugged. "Not my story to tell, but let's just say her guardian was a big stickler on education and knowing things." He stated simply before the waitress returned with their drinks, setting them down on the table to each person who ordered them. The blond woman was particularly careful with the hot tea. Afterwards, she pulled out a small note pad and stood rested, eyebrow arched sassily.

"You four ready to order?" She asked impatiently. Sasha quirked an eyebrow at her and threw a threatening glare. _Are you for real?_

"Yeah," The coal-haired girl answered dryly. "I'll have the spicy fried chicken with a side of seasoned veggies." The woman gave a curt nod and turned to the others. They all gave their own orders and the woman, with another curt gesture, ripped out the order from her notepad and twitched away. Sasha couldn't help but feel a little spiteful towards the waitress, what with the impatient air she burned off. _No tip for you. _"Hey, something just occurred to me." She stated and all eyes were on her. "Who's paying?"

Time had passed on like a breeze as they shared stories and thoughts over their lunch. Sasha made the common snide remark to Dick, one that he could counter and the two would banter off in a battle of wits with words. Artemis rolled her eyes at these moments and continued eating her club sandwich while Barbara got onto Dick for mistreating a lady. All in all, the time spent there in that booth was between four friends in Gotham, living completely normal lives on a normal day. The moment was, oddly enough, foreign for Sasha. Before, when she was with Rosalie, it was always go to school, come home, and stay home. Afterwards, it was go to school, come home, suit up, and kick asses. It felt like a breath of fresh air for her.

Sasha knew she couldn't do this forever. No. It would get boring for her. She had to be continuously moving, never stuck in one moment. Ever since she could no longer remember her past, she was fighting. Maybe, more than likely, she would do just that until her dying days. In a way, Sasha was okay with that.

"Hey, Sash?" Artemis's voice brought her back to reality and she turned to see the blond looking behind her, eyes narrowed toward the window. "It's either you or Dick that's getting all the attention."

"What?" Both teens said and whipped around to see what exactly the archer was staring at. Sasha let out a sound that was slightly animalistic as her teeth ground together in agitation. Several reporters were waiting patiently outside that damn door.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," She scowled and stood up, grabbing her jacket.

Dicked glanced over at Artemis, eyes wide. "She's not gonna pick a fight, is she?" When Artemis shrugged, he quickly followed after the fuming teenager. "Sasha!"

Both of them were already out the door when he finally caught up to her and the reporters burst in a fury of questions that Sasha tried to brush off with bitter comments such as, "No comment," "Leave me alone," and even "Piss off." She pulled on her jacket and shoved her hand sin her pockets, eyes scanning the area to find a way out of her predicament.

"Aleksandra! What are your feelings of being kicked out by your own mother right after returning home?" One of them asked. That was the question that really quirked her.

She whipped around, her mouth open, ready to make a smartass, spiteful comment that would ruin her mother forever. That's when Dick grabbed her hand, feeling sorry for the girl who was getting hounded by people that wanted the latest quote form the girl who'd just gotten kicked out of her multi-million dollar house. He dragged her away and she quickly caught up to pace with him.

"C'mon, I know where we can lose 'em." He cast over his shoulder and turned down a block, where he nearly ran into a vendor. "Whoa, sorry!" He said quickly and dashed around, still dragging the girl along with him.

"Dick! I'm fine. Let go!" Sasha called after him, her voice still angry and annoyed from the incident. She tried to wiggle out of his hold on her hand, not liking the contact too much. Dick, however, ignored her dismissal and continued running until he knew that the reporters probably disbanded. He stopped and turned to face Sasha. Her eyes were brown, but something burned behind that mud-like tint. Something fiery and golden. He smirked.

"You're not gonna run away if I let go, will you?" He asked smugly and she stared at him like he was crazy.

"Depends." She answered curtly and he let go. She didn't run. Instead, she placed her hand on her hip and brushed her hair back, inhaling and exhaling agitatedly. "We just ditched our friends."

Dick shrugged. "They'll be fine."

Sasha scoffed and shook her head. "Really? Ya' know, I'm not the nicest girl, but I don't just leave my friends in the dust like-"

"Do you wanna hang out sometime next weekend?"

"What?" Sasha blinked, her angered emotions now turned innocent and clueless. Of course, she did hear him, it was the shock that compelled her to ask. He knew that she heard him and just stared at her, a smug grin that looked way to familiar still on his face. "Umm," Sasha trailed, not sure what to say.

She was uncertain. Dick knew that and continued to stare at her in silence until he got a right answer. Sasha recomposed herself and crossed her arms, her lips tilted upward in a smirk. "If I say no?" She teased and he arched a brow. "Stubborn boy. Sure, if it means we can get back to our friends," She said lightly and began to walk back, but he stopped her a looked her straight in the eyes.

"I don't want you to go if you don't want to." He said, his tone serious. Though, Sasha just scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Trust me, Grayson, you would know if I didn't want to _'hang out'_ with you," She said smugly, shooting him a genuine smile before heading back.

**Gotham City**

**September 23rd 19:44 EDT**

The first thing that Sasha did when she and Artemis returned home was fall on the couch, grab one of the small pillows and curl up whilst she hugged it to her chest, the biggest grin on her face. She felt like squealing. Instead, she buried her face in the pillow and squirmed as tightly as she could without making too much of a fuss. Artemis plopped down on the armchair and looked at her with a smile. "What's got you into such a good mood?" She asked, genuinely oblivious to the little get-together that the girl and Dick scheduled.

Sasha just looked up at her, still smiling, and shook her head, refusing to answer. Paula Crock entered the room on her wheelchair from the kitchen and looked over at the girl. Her face suddenly became the reference for Artemis's frequent smug, knowing expressions. "Either I'm blind, or that girl just got asked out on a date." She said, her tone certain for what she had just claimed. Sasha shot up, eyes wide and playfully defiant.

"Was not!" She called as Artemis gasped in surprised.

"No way, did Dick as you out on a date?" She asked in disbelief. The girl threw her a sneer and shook her head.

"No! He just asked if he wanted to hang out next weekend," Sasha defended, her voice lowering as she shrank back into the couch.

Artemis and Paula exchanged glances, both similar in many ways. Like mother, like daughter, it seemed. "He asked you to hang out – next weekend – just the two of you." Artemis clarified and Sasha nodded to verify. The archer laughed. "That is so a date!"

Sasha hid her face in the pillow and shouted out so they could hear her, "It's not a date! We're just hanging out!" Though, expressed through her burning blush, she knew that it wasn't just hanging out.

Paula scoffed and began to wheel back into the kitchen. "Dinner's waiting for you, ladies. We're having vermicelli salad with spring rolls."

"With the tiny little peppers?" Came a muffled reply.

The ex-villan smiled softly. "Yes, now stop mopping about your date and eat."

* * *

**-REVIEW! **


	12. Chapter Eleven

**From the Ashes**

**Disclaimer:**

**Chapter Eleven**

**Gotham City**

**September 24th 04:03 EDT**

Sasha had a nightmare. It was one of the worst, if not the absolute. She woke up, close to screaming, but luckily she didn't, her breath caught in her throat and her voice suddenly escaped her. Amber eyes were wide with fear, fear of the shadows, fear of everything and her skin was red hot as her tattoos burned brightly. Her chest fell up and down, up and down and she turned this way and that, looking into every corner of Artemis's living room. She didn't want to get up and turn on the light not only because she knew the shadows would become more apparent, but also because she couldn't. She was paralyzed by fear, could barely move despite her body willing her to do so. This just had to be the night that she decided not to light a candle nearby when she slept.

She couldn't calm down. She was terrified. She was terrified because she knew that something was watching her. Someone. She knew who was watching her. That thing was watching her this whole time, ever since she woke up close to over two months ago. _Wilt. _The name was like a curse now. Sasha wasn't just paranoid. She knew that Wilt was watching her. The woman had control over shadows for fuck's sake. So what was stopping her from killing her?

Maybe Wilt didn't want to kill her, but wanted her for something. Her powers? Her past? Once again, her past was suddenly brought up in some way that she couldn't avoid. What was so significant about her that she couldn't remember?

Sasha glanced down at herself. She was sweaty, strange for a fire elemental, and all of her covers were thrown off of her. Coal-shades hair was disheveled and messed up and her body burned with a stinging sensation. It wasn't a burn – no, she knew that much. She strained in the dark to look closer at her tanned skin, eyes narrow. Luckily, her tattoos provided a dim, fiery glow to light up small regions of her body, but otherwise she was practically blind. Though, in the light that she had, she could make out what looked like – like, rope burns. Severe rope burns.

Her blood ran cold and she felt the color drain from her entire body. With what felt like all her energy, she lifted her hands to her lips and stared into the darkness. Tears sprang in her eyes and she had to force herself from shaking violently. She was attacked. Her nightmare wasn't just a nightmare; it was reality. Not just in this situation, but the whole time. Sasha thought she was afraid before, but now that she knew this thing was hunting her like she was the last scrap of good meat on this earth, she didn't think she could fight anymore. She didn't want to fight, for once in her knowing life. Every one of her senses were on high alert and the dark seemed…darker.

She knew this was physically impossible because there is nothing darker than the black she stared into. The laws of the light spectrum didn't allow such a thing to happen. Black, it was just lack of light. So, if that were the case, one would think, that to solve her problem, she'd just flip a switch. It wasn't that easy, however. Shadows were always there – in light and dark. Wilt was always there.

In attempt to stop herself from violently shaking, she hugged herself, pulling her knees close to her chest and burying her face behind her knees. Eye shut tight, she just kept whispering to herself. "Stay calm, it's going to be alright, it was just a-a-a nightmare." They were lies, of course. Sasha was well aware of the burns that stung her wrists and ankles and neck and possibly every moving joint in her body. She was well aware of the very real terror she was feeling.

It was at that moment that she realized that this wasn't a game. She was cornered and threatened. Now, it was her turn to either fight back or give up.

That voice still echoed in her head like the howls of the wind. _"Be very afraid, Aleksandra Volkov,"_

**Gotham City – Gotham Academy**

**September 25th 12:32 EDT**

It was Tuesday. Sasha was at school, the day before she couldn't bring herself from getting off the couch. Artemis didn't question why she couldn't get up and left her where she was. Then it was Tuesday. Sasha forced herself to go to school and she spent the day mostly in silent thinking. During lunch, she was sitting quietly with Ivan, arms crossed on the table infront of them and her head low. Out of impulse, she began to drum her fingers against the table in the same rhythm her latest dance was. Her left foot tapped out the beat.

Ivan glanced at her awkwardly, he could tell she was spaced. The boy tried to poke her several times to get her attention, even called her name before he decided to shove her. She was really out of it; he could tell by the way she almost fell of the seat. Usually, the Russian was more guarded and had more stability. Sasha blinked a couple times as she regained her posture and looked at Ivan scornfully. "What?" She snapped, probably more aggressive than she intended. Ivan gave her one of those sassy "mom glares." The glare with a slightly parted mouth, arched brows, and a scowl that could kill.

"Don't talk to me with that attitude, young lady," He scolded. "I outta pop your mouth, girly." He declared and elbowed her. She rolled her eyes at him and plopped her head on her hands. "What is wrong with you? You skipped school yesterday and you show up all pissy and moody. It's not the usual hot temperament you have, something is seriously wrong and it's gonna give you wrinkles."

Sasha inhaled and exhaled deeply, wiping a hand over her face and shaking her head. "Sorry, Ivan. I'm just…not having a good day," Her breath was shaky as she spoke and she quickly retreated to her silence. Ivan eyed her, not buying her excuses obviously.

"Mhm. I know it's not just your usual PMS, something is really eating you." He said, his voice more concerned. "You need to talk about it."

She glanced at him and huffed. She wasn't sure how to talk about her situation. The closest thing she could describe her situation in words would be, "I'm fucking scared," but she didn't want to say that. She stared forward, not exactly looking at anything, and pursed her lips. She shrugged weakly. "I've just been having some really disturbing thoughts."

Ivan made a noise close to the sound of a dying parakeet and he grasped Sasha's shoulder's so hard, she even winced. His eyes were wide and terror filled. "Please tell me you're not think about suicide!" He wailed, genuinely convinced of his claims. Sasha stared at him, blinked, and laughed for the first time in two days.

"No." She finally said as she caught her breath form laughing. "Not those kind of thoughts, idiot," She chuckled and rolled her eyes. "I'm just scared about the future." It was a lie, and she hated it, but she couldn't just tell Ivan that she was scared of some psycho, demon woman that was probably going to kill her.

Ivan released his death grip on her shoulders and his own shoulders dropped as he released a heavy breath. "Good. I'm just starting to like you, Volkov, and I'm not gonna let you kill yourself or so help me I _will_ resurrect you and strangle you." He declared, sounding so determined, and sent Sasha back into a small fit of laughter.

"You sound so sure," She stated.

"Damn straight, chica. I'll go all black magic on your ass," He joked and shouldered her, gathering up a more serious expression as he continued. "So, what's up?"

Sasha sighed and shrugged her shoulders, biting her lip. "I guess, I just never really looked at the future, you know? I'm too busy screwing around and with all this shit with my mom, I just started worrying. Do you think I totally fucked up my life?" It was only three-fourths of a lie. It was her frustration in a nut shell. Ivan shook his head, however.

"You were fucked to begin with, Sash. I think by getting away from mommy, though, that you just opened some new doors in your life. You had two choices – stay home and be a good little girl that mommy wants and become owner of Scatter and be some wealthy ass Russian with a lot of vodka-" Ivan paused to get a reaction from Sasha and she tilted her head in consideration. She giggled and he rolled his eyes at her shamefully. "Shame. Anyways, it's either that or you can rebel and, I dunno, be a dancer or something that you _want_ to do." He said with a shrug and reached for his cola on the table. He took a sip and shrugged. "Wealthy Russian with a shit ton of vodka doesn't sound too bad, though,"

The two of them laughed and Sasha shoved him, shaking her head. "No. I choose the path of rebellion, my dear friend, even if wealth and alcohol does sound like a good deal."

"Not the healthiest idea," Ivan chipped.

"Of course." Sasha nodded in acknowledgement. "Next time I get depressed, I really need to call you," She said jokingly.

"That's what friends are for." Ivan said with a shrug and looked across the courtyard. His gossip-material permeable eyes zeroed in on one pair of freshmen and he bumped his precious friend with his elbow. "Hey, you probably know this more than I do, are those two dating?" He asked, forcing Sasha to look where he was.

Across the courtyard sat two freshmen, one who's long, bleached white hair was fading into dark brown from the roots, her hands holding what looked to be a new book, and mossy green eyes focused, and the other, a boy with an air as rebellious as his appearance, sat and chatted with her casually, despite the look of apathy she held. Sasha knew who they were, of course. The unmistakable faces of Jason Todd and Blaire Grey. Once again, she caught them together, but not quite_ together_-together.

The girl shrugged. "Dunno. I don't think so. Maybe I'll ask Dick this weekend when I-"

"What?!" Ivan's death grip returned and yanked her to look straight at him. His expression was that of a mad man, a grin from ear to ear. "No, screw their relationship. Are you going on a date with Dick Grayson this weekend?" His voice reached higher frequencies than any small, female child could reach. Sasha forcefully, but playfully, pulled herself out of his grip and shoved his face away from hers.

"No." She retorted. "We're just hanging out. Will ya' keep it down? I swear, your voice can raise the fucking dead."

Ivan's lips formed a tight, straight line and he pointed a finger at her. "Bullshit." He opened his mouth to continue but the bell rang, indicating the end of class. His eyes narrowed and he watched Sasha get up, grab her bag and sheepishly shrug her shoulders at him. "I will corner you, Volkov."

Sasha waved as they parted ways and called, "Good luck, fruitcake! Love you!" as she walked into the building. She made her way to her next class, finding it very quickly. Dr. Albertson, possibly her favorite teacher, mainly for his ironic and cynical sense of humor, sat at his desk, seat leaned back lazily, reading a book, and his feet placed neatly on his desk. "Hey, Dr. A," She greeted and glanced at his book. "Little early to be reading those books, eh?" She asked jokingly and the man actually fell for her trick to look at the cover.

The title, _Celtic Folklore_, indicated that her suggestive joke was merely that. A joke. He chuckled and set the book down. "Afternoon, Miss Volkov, you're in luck today, we didn't have any new material last class, so there is no need to take notes." He said formally.

"Lectures, then?" Sasha asked, shifting where she stood. He nodded generously and quickly gestured for her to take a seat. She obliged and proceeded to her usual spot at the back of the class room. She dropped her very light bag down next to her desk and plopped down in her seat. As more students gradually entered the classroom, the more effort Sasha had to use to tune out the usual chatter. She glanced up when she saw a familiar face and waved at Dick as he entered and took his seat at the front. Dr. Albertson jumped to his feet and took leisurely strides to the front of the room, he clapped his hands together.

"Today, we'll be going over the study of the Old Testament in Judaism. If you touch you textbook, I swear I'll hit you with it." He said and looked over at a few particular students who based their studies off of books, rather than experience. He turned sharply and with curt, jut movements began writing in neat cursive as he spoke, clear and mighty as always. Sasha did everything in her power to not entirely pay attention. She loved the man, but she could honestly careless about the religions. She herself couldn't really know what to believe.

In between daydreaming and tapping out her dance moves, she found it fairly easy to not pay attention. Often times she brought out her smart phone, concealing it as she did so, and searched the Internet for interesting facts. She discovered pretty quick that this was what everyday teenagers did on their free time. In a span of five minutes she learned seven new words. Some were, of course, not the nicest or cleanest words, but they were words. Ah, the beauty of the Internet.

Every now and then she'd scratch at her wrists. Luckily, her blazer would cover the large amounts of gauze she had wrapped around her burns. Her high socks also covered the ones around her ankles, and as for her neck, she just seemed that much shorter as she tried to keep her neck hidden behind her collar. The burns were irritating, but had ceased to bleed through the gauze the night before, so she didn't have to worry about making a mess. Even Artemis didn't know about the burns.

It was maybe forty minutes into the class when her hands on the desks began to really irritate her, though. It felt like the small claws of a cat tearing at her skin. It took her a while to realize that her hands, more not her fingers and palms, shouldn't be hurting because they weren't burnt. She looked down her froze, her heart jumping up to her throat and her stomach falling and twisting. Gut wrenching. A black, thread-like material stitched through her hands from her own shadow and pinned her hands to the wooden surface. Her voice escaped her and she could not alarm anyone as a terrifying and all too familiar voice echoed in her mind.

"_Been a while, neh, Aleksandra?" _Thick like molten chocolate and sinister like a snake, the voice was female, older and savage. It was Wilt. "_I'm sure you've already figured out that you cannot cry for help. Even if you could, how would believe that the voice of a superhuman woman who could control the shadows as she wills. Not without revealing your big secret, am I wrong?"_ Wilt's voice was a malevolent purr.

Sasha wasn't shaking, she was completely paralyzed by fear. A mixture of fear, violation, and anger coursed through her veins, setting her nerves on fire and she felt heat rising in her hands and in her chest. Her tattoos began to flicker and she begged herself, her inner self to not expose. Her cover was completely at risk. _What do you want? _She asked mentally, her thoughts wavering from threatening to scared.

_"Me? Well, that's for me to know and you to find out."_ The woman giggled, sending shivers down her spine that made her body go numb. "_I'm just curious about how you'll react to the process of finding out. What should I do? Uncover your darkest secrets, put you into the worst torture imaginable."_ Again with that sadistic chuckle.

_I-I'm not afraid of you. _Sasha through stubbornly still unsure of herself.

_"Oh? Really now? Well, if you are alright with being hurt yourself, what about your friends?"_ Sasha visibly tensed and her jaw clenched. Her temper burned like a blazing fire. _"Ah. Now I see, Aleksandra. The fun I could have with them. Render them to every pain known infront of you before unmasking them to the world and letting the ravenous 'villains' you fight finish my job?_"

_If you touch them, you'll regret it._

"_Or maybe I can tell them the truth about your past, the one spent with your older brother, Andrii." _Wilt said lightly, entertaining the ideas as her voice hummed them to Sasha. The girl tensed at the mention of her past. _What do you know?_

There was a pause and Wilt's luring chuckle came back and she sighed. _"Everything, my dear."_ She said as though it were obvious, but clearly it was not. Sasha ground her teeth together, the sound of the grinding hurting her head, as well as her jaw. She stared down at her hands, they were bleeding.

_What do you want?_ She asked again and the thread material felt like razor blades now, as though Wilt were to get her to pay very close attention.

"_I want you, Aleksandra. The little rose of the Himura family, and now the burning flame that teeters on the edge of fate."_ Wilt's tone was determined and cold, lifeless almost. _"I will make you suffer and when you have, you will then know what exactly I want." _With a curt jerking motion, the shadows ripped out of her body and retreated as well as Wilt's ever looming voice. It left Sasha in a state of panic and she kept glancing around, making herself familiar with the faces that stared at Dr. Albertson as he continued to lecture as if what had just happened never happened. The only thing that Sasha had to reassure herself of her sanity was the blood that oozed out of the tiny cuts on both her hands.

The bell rang and with shaky hands, Sasha grabbed her bag, hurriedly slugged it over her shoulder and rushed out of the room, hoping no one would notice that her hands were now stained crimson. She looked around the halls for anything she could reach out to and fortunately enough she caught glimpse of a familiar blond ponytail. She snatched Artemis from the current of students that channeled through the halls and, with a death grip on the archer's arm, dragged her to the restroom. No one was in there and she quickly pulled out a thick, three inch binder from her bag and stalled it into the door so it wouldn't open. Sasha dropped her bag and leaned on the wall, she began to slide down, running her hand over her face and through her hair, not caring the smearing of blood. She didn't even notice her other hand still clung to Artemis who stared down at her, confused and slightly horrified.

"Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit." She growled, frustrated and shaky. "I'm such a fucking dumbass. Shit. Shit."

"Jesus Christ, Sash, what the hell happened?" Artemis asked, crouching down to her level and taking her hand, looking over the wounds and gasped as she discovered the gauze. She looked up at Sasha, eyes angry and serious. "Sasha, who the hell did this? What happened?"

Sasha bit her lip, not sure whether to tell and scared that her voice had escaped her once more. She sucked in a shaky and choppy breathy and tried to form the words, not sure was to say. "I…I…I-It was…Wilt. W-Wilt happened." She finally blurted, her voice stolen and raspy. She was close to sobbing.

Artemis paled, her olive complexion now ghost white and she stared at her younger counterpart with wide brown eyes. "Wilt?! I-Is she here?"

"She's always been here and I'm so fucking stupid. She thinks this is a fucking game, but dammit!" She swiped her free hand down onto the ground, her tattoos blazed to life like a fiery pulse and she growled lowly. "That bitch."

"Wilt. Wilt did this to you, what do you mean she's always been here?" Artemis questioned, still looking over her hand but glanced at her quizzically. "I need supplies. What the hell is with this gauze?"

Sasha kicked at her bag. "I have gauze and Neosporin in there, and some burn cream." She said dully, her voice no longer shaking, instead had a frightening emptiness.

"Burn cream?"

Sasha explained the story to the blond from the nightmare that turned to be real to the dark voice that haunted her and had sown a thread of shadows into her skin. She felt her voice rising in anger as she spoke about how Wilt had threatened her friends. Her family. She did everything in her power to keep from physically lashing out as she spoke, swearing not only at Wilt but also the stinging pain that raced up her arms as Artemis treated her wounds. Artemis let down her last hand, now wrapped in gauze already dyed red.

She looked up, concerned at her friend. "It sounds like she wants your attention, but why?" She questioned and Sasha shook her head.

"I don't give a fuck what she wants with me anymore. Before, I was fucking terrified of her." She declared and rose, grabbing her bag and slinging it over her shoulder.

"What are you now?"

"I'm pissed."

**REVIEW REPLIES!**

(Sorry, I lost track of which review's I've replied to, so if I don't reply to a review you guys have made, I'm sorry!)

**koryandrs **– Hello! Glad you like the ass kicking in chapter eleven and thank you so much for pointing out my HUGE mistyping on Barbara's name. I have this problem, probably from my dyslexia, where I register "Barbra" from "Barbara" and vice versa. It makes me so mad and it effects my writing like this. I corrected it, thank god, and hopefully I won't make the same mistake later in life. Thank you for the review and thanks for reading!

**piggythelaw** – For one, I just love the fact that you are such a loyal reader and reviewer. For that, I give you digital cookies! Ah, yes the date. That will be interesting to construct, but it won't be happening for maybe a three chapters. Haha. Hope you enjoy this chapter and thank you for reading and reviewing!

**LadyFelton1994** – Hi! Glad you liked the chapter and thank you for reading and reviewing! I don't believe I've seen you review until now, so in favor of that welcome to my lovely review board!

**A/N:** If I forgot to reply to your review, I'm terribly sorry! Thank you for reviewing guys and I hope to see you again, I really do like to read and reply to your reviews. Feel free to also ask questions, if you want to know how something came about in the story or how I came up with one of my characters, please ask! Thank you! Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, keep reading and reviewing. Also, feel free to favorite and follow! See you next chapter!


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